SBRI Healthcare is delivered collaboratively by NHS England and the AHSN Network to develop innovative products and services that address unmet health needs. The West of England AHSN is supporting the autumn funding competition, which is now open for applications. The deadline for applications is 24 November 2016.
Entrepreneurs are invited to apply for up to £1.1 million investment to develop and commercialise innovations with a focus on developing ‘General Practice of the Future’.
Innovations are sought to address three main challenge areas in general practice:
- Workload and demand management: a significant volume of workload is being transferred from acute care to primary care. We are seeking technology solutions to better forecast demand to better arm the system to bring solutions that release general practice staff time.
- Diagnostics and earlier triage: primary care heavily relies on acute care for diagnostic testing. Solutions that bring rapid, reliable and robust diagnostic testing, by a wide range of non-GP staff, to enable earlier triage and potentially redesigning of pathways are sought.
- Self-care: self-care is high on the agendas of several national health and care organisations including NHS England. We need to enable and inspire patients to care for themselves in partnership with their general practitioner. We need industry to develop products that can make this dream a reality.
Applications are invited from across the UK. Briefing events will take place in Cambridge on 25 October and Bristol on 27 October 2016.
Bristol briefing
The Bristol briefing event on Thursday 27 October will take place at the Doubletree by Hilton hotel from 1.30pm to 4.30pm. To book your place visit the SBRI Healthcare website.
Dr Peter Brindle, Lead for Commissioning Evidence Informed Care at the West of England AHSN, says: “90% of patient contacts in the NHS take place in general practice, so small changes here can have a big impact on the rest of the healthcare system and therefore on the service our patients receive.
“We all know that general practice is facing a lot of challenges, but thankfully we have a thriving technology full of potential solutions. The problem in the past is that sometimes these solutions have not always matched the particular problems that need solving in a relevant and affordable way, and it is this issue that the SBRI challenge will tackle. It represents a fantastic opportunity for entrepreneurs to gain significant investment and to bring much needed practical innovation general practice.”
Lars Sundstrom, Director of Enterprise at the West of England AHSN, adds: “Linking innovative businesses with the challenges currently faced in primary care is essential to transform and sustain the NHS. This is a great example that will help UK companies while saving time and money that can be spent on healthcare.”
Full details available on the SBRI Healthcare website: www.sbrihealthcare.co.uk. For more information call our Enterprise Team on 0117 900 2652 or email enterprise@weahsn.net.
Find out more about companies the West of England ASHN has already supported to secure funding through SBRI Healthcare competitions: www.weahsn.net/successful-sbri-awards/
Posted on September 26, 2016
