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Topic : News and Press Type : Report

On Thursday 21 November 2024 we were pleased to co-host the “Collaborate to Innovate” event with Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust (STH) and the Shelford Group, with the aim of building stronger relationships between the NHS and industry.

In 2023 we announced a strategic partnership with the Shelford Group, a collaborative of ten of the largest research and teaching hospitals in England, which committed to a joint programme of work to offer solutions to some of the biggest challenges impacting the NHS. Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust is the second of the Shelford Group’s ten NHS Trusts to host an event as part of this programme of work, with the first being Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust in February this year.

The event’s focus was on how NHS and industry might collaborate most effectively to develop, evaluate and adopt novel health technologies to meet patients’ needs, building on the strength of Sheffield’s existing local health tech innovation ecosystem. Over 30 HealthTech companies attended the event, in addition to representatives from Sheffield’s NHS and innovation organisations.

Through a series of panel discussions, the event showcased some of Sheffield’s areas ripe for engagement with the health technology industry, and its existing health and care innovations. The first session focused on a series of presentations from across the Sheffield innovation ecosystem, including the AWRC and AMRC, Insigneo and the Digital Health Hub, Health Innovation Yorkshire and Humber, and the Trust’s existing innovation work with the NIHR Health Tech Research Centres in Sheffield and on the national stage. It showcased Sheffield’s existing innovation infrastructure, and its extensive support for NHS and industry partnerships.

Care of the future: capitalising on the opportunities of AI and digitally enabled care

Mark Tuckett, Chief Strategy Officer at STH, chaired this session which drew on examples and learning from existing local NHS and industry partnerships that are using artificial intelligence (AI) to improve patient experience and free up clinical capacity. Examples of projects being worked on include combining AI and clinical evidence to automate routine clinical conversations, helping to increase hospitals’ capacity and allowing clinical professionals to spend more time meeting patients’ needs. Dom Raban from Xploro showcased interactive educational content to help younger patients become better prepared active participants in their health treatment. The team discussed the potential for AI to help deliver more effective community healthcare services, by freeing up staff capacity to spend more time with patients. Other issues explored included the need for clinical education and training on AI at an earlier stage, and the importance of testing at scale and with a diverse range of communities, to help avoid embedded bias in AI tools.

Working in partnership: an invitation for shared thinking

Michael Harper, Chief Operating Officer at STH, chaired this session which focused on key challenges across Sheffield, and where they may be opportunities for partnerships and new ideas. Consultant Urological Surgeon Jim Catto shared examples of where genomic sequencing is being used to treat bladder cancer, amongst other novel methods. Other areas covered during this discussion included learning from an existing partnership with industry, developing a new technology, CognoSpeak, to aid dementia diagnosis, and the organisational development opportunities for staff in new digitally enabled healthcare. Issues discussed included the key aspects of a successful NHS and industry partnership, the crucial role new technologies can play in managing demand, and the need to ensure they provide the best value by helping to meet the challenges which NHS Trusts are currently most incentivised to tackle.

Next steps

Speaking on next steps, Kirsten Major, Chief Executive of STH, said: “This event has been an invaluable opportunity for both NHS and industry to hear learnings from our work to develop technologies that both improve patient experience and also help healthcare colleagues work as efficiently as possible. We have also had the opportunity to explore areas of challenge and opportunity in Sheffield, where industry may be able to assist further, and I look forward to the collaborations which we hope will arise from this event.”

If you are interested in finding out more about any of the partnerships featured during the event, please contact sth.innovation@nhs.net