Health Enterprise East (HEE) has unveiled the winners of its NHS innovation competition which, for the first time, included a new category that opened the door to industry participants.
Its innovative competition challenges staff working in the HEE’s Member Trusts to showcase new ideas for products and services that address unmet needs in the NHS and improve patient services.
Announced winners in each category, which each received £2,500 to further advance their idea, were:
Medical Technology: Peter Hoskin & team from East & North Hertfordshire NHS Trust, for a fixation template device designed to deliver high dose radiation in prostate cancer treatment.
Patient Safety: Dr Latha Thangaraj & team from West Hertfordshire Hospitals NHS Trust, for their project Living in comfort, cherishing life, which has “dramatically improved outcomes” for elderly patients following hip fracture surgery.
Software/ICT/Assistive Technology: Harikrishna Doshi & team from Papworth Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, for their Lung donor offers app, which that automatically matches organ donors to an ideal recipient from a pool of potential candidates without the need for manual selection.
Service Improvement: Philippa Taitt & team from Norfolk & Norwich University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, for a project that has increased efficiency and improved patient satisfaction by influencing ‘Did Not Attends’ in a busy radiology department.
SME Innovation: Andrea Haworth & team at Congenica Ltd, for a genome analytics platform for rapid and accurate genomic interpretation and diagnosis of genetic disorders.
“In this our tenth NHS Innovation Competition we continue to recognised the very best ideas in health and care innovation from across the region. More so than ever, the NHS needs bright ideas to help address healthcare challenges and improve patient services,” said Dr Anne Blackwood, Chief Executive at HEE.
“There was a strong response not just from NHS staff within our Member Trusts but from industry this year too. All those shortlisted were chosen not only for their creative thinking but also for their fantastic work and commitment to patient care”.
HEE is a leading NHS innovation hub committed to improving healthcare through the provision of professional business and innovation management services, working with NHS organisations nationally and Med Tech companies globally to support the development of innovative products and services which meet currently unmet healthcare needs.
