A grand day for the NHS Innovation Service

The NHS Innovation Service, in which Health Innovation Wessex plays a leading role, has received its 1,000th submission of a new product or technology idea.

The service helps innovators across England navigate the complexities of the NHS, whilst simultaneously helping the NHS find new innovations that meet its needs.

It has been supporting innovators since 2022, providing access to bespoke advice and practical support from organisations with expertise in the development and adoption of health innovation.

HIW has shared responsibility for the gateway processing of submissions, ensuring that innovations are allocated to any of the 15 regional health innovation networks or ten national bodies best suited to supporting them.

A huge range of health innovation has been supported over the years, including digital tools to support mental health; clothing tailored to support patients living with long-term catheters and ports; improving care for people with inflammatory bowel diseases; and at-home fertility screening.

There were 338 assessments of ideas submitted to the IS in 2023/24, that’s nearly seven innovations emerging every working week, and the rate of growth shows no sign of slowing.

The task of leading the triage stage for every innovation submission falls to HIW Programme Manager Gemma Snell, and Ben Porter at Health Innovation North East and North Cumbria, as the Needs Assessment Service leads for NHS IS.

Gemma said: “The future of the NHS depends on it being able to bring in new technology and techniques to make the system more efficient and improve treatment and outcomes for patients.

“The Government’s 10 Year Plan will also need innovative approaches to its priorities of using more digital technology, prioritising preventative methods to healthcare and treating more people in the community rather than in hospital. The NHS Innovation Service is the route for these approaches and it’s a privilege for Health Innovation Wessex to be integral to the process.” 

The service supports innovations at all stages of development, from ideas to prototypes to innovations already deployed in NHS services. The support includes everything from early-stage advice to commercialisation, evidence generation, getting registered with the relevant regulatory authorities and navigating procurement.

Ben said: “It’s fantastic to see the breadth of innovators from sole traders, NHS healthcare professionals, academics, SMEs and large global companies leveraging the coordinated service to progress their innovations. The service is a particularly great first port of call to engage with your local health innovation network to understand how to develop your idea and to understand whether this is something local systems require to support the NHS’s wider goals.”