July 2025 Newsletter

New data-driven innovation and research centre for health and social care opens in Edinburgh

A new £49.2 million data-driven innovation and research centre for health and social care opened in Edinburgh in a bid to tackle ‘urgent’ challenges – including an ageing population, widening health inequalities and childhood wellbeing. The pioneering Usher Building in the city’s BioQuarter was officially unveiled by Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Director General of the World Health Organisation, and leading politicians at a press launch. The new building will house more than 900 researchers, health and care providers and industry leaders who are harnessing data to improve health and social care outcomes.

Livingston firm aims for global market reach in next generation biosensors and wearables through French partnership

A Livingston-based medical diagnostics specialist has teamed up with a French manufacturer of advanced electrodes to develop next generation biosensors and wearables. FlexMedical aims to revolutionise ‘point-of-care’ medical testing kits to speed up the diagnosis of multiple diseases and medical conditions – including respiratory disease, sepsis, kidney disease, heart disease and diabetes. The strategic collaboration will open opportunities to develop and commercialise electrode components for diagnostic devices used in healthcare industry, say the firms.

Introducing “Edinburgh Advanced Therapies” initiative

“Edinburgh Advanced Therapies”, is a new initiative that aims to foster a connected and collaborative environment for advanced therapies across Edinburgh University, NHS Lothian, and other local partners – to expedite the development and delivery of advanced therapies for patients. Edinburgh is home to many people working in this field, collated with a growing cluster of advanced therapy spinouts, established SMEs, and CGT services. The city also boasts expert clinicians and a broad range of cutting- edge pre-clinical advanced therapy developments, all focussed on innovation and driving progress in advanced therapies. The Edinburgh Advanced Therapies group aims to bring together key parts of this ecosystem to facilitate knowledge exchange and foster connection and collaboration between colleagues. It is an interdisciplinary group and initially open to staff from across the University of Edinburgh, SNBTS, NHS Lothian, and the Cell and Gene Therapy Catapult. The official launch of this group will take place on 23rd September 2025, at QMRI, Little France.

£1.5 million grant secured to investigate the role of full body PET/CT imaging to track fibrosis activity in Crohn's disease

We’re pleased to announce that Dr Rahul Kalla (Consultant Gastroenterologist and NRS Clinician in NHS Lothian) has successfully secured a ~£1.5 million grant to investigate the use of PET- based imaging to track fibrosis activity in Crohn’s disease for the first time. This grant builds on the MRC/NIHR Clinical Academic Research Partnership (CARP) Fellowship that Dr Kalla obtained in 2024. With funding from Johnson & Johnson, and in collaboration with the Edinburgh Cardiovascular Imaging Group (led by Professor David E. Newby), Rahul and his team will investigate the role of PET-based imaging to track fibrosis activity in Crohn’s disease for the first time. They will use the newly installed full body PET/CT scanner in Edinburgh to gain insights into the disease processes that cause intestinal fibrosis (£12 million UKRI investment).

SHARE reaches 50,000 participants in Southeast Scotland

The Scottish Health Register and Biobank (SHARE) has seen a significant increase in recruitment in Southeast Scotland and is delighted to announce that it has reached the milestone of 50,000 registrants in that area. SHARE is an NHS Research Scotland initiative that aims to establish a register of adults who consent to the access and use of their electronic health records in order to identify them as potentially eligible for research projects. Further information is available on the SHARE website.

Life Sciences Sector Plan to grow economy and transform NHS

The UK’s life sciences industry is worth over £100 billion and is a powerhouse for our economy. But to become Europe’s leading life sciences economy by 2030, we need a clear and ambitious strategy. That’s why the government has launched a bold new Life Sciences Sector Plan as part of the government’s flagship Industrial Strategy, setting out a ten-year mission to harness British science and innovation to deliver long-term economic growth and a stronger, prevention-focused NHS.

The Scottish AI Playbook

The Scottish AI Playbook has recently been relaunched with updated and expanded resources to help Scotland’s businesses and organisations adopt AI in an ethical, trustworthy, and inclusive way. The Playbook is an open and practical guide to support businesses on their AI journey and contains support and resources.

NIHR Annual Report for 2024/25 published

NIHR have released the publication of their Annual Report for 2024/25. The report showcases some of the incredible work done across the NIHR over the past year to deliver life-changing research for the health and wealth of the nation. Read some of the highlights here and find out more in the full report on our website.

New AI-powered service launched to transform cancer detection and care

A new artificial intelligence-powered service designed to transform cancer research has been launched. The service, which was funded by the NIHR, is the result of a partnership between The Royal Marsden NHS Foundation Trust; digital business and technology services firm NTT DATA; and CARPL.ai, an artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning platform. It aims to develop new ways to speed up cancer detection and treatment across the NHS by using AI to analyse medical images. This will help support clinicians in making faster and more accurate decisions.

Public service reform to be aided by digitalisation and the power of AI

Public service reform in Scotland will increasingly be aided by the digitalisation of services and the power of artificial intelligence, according to a new government strategy document. Ministers have committed to 25 per cent of all government services being administered via a digital mailbox service by 2030 with the aim of saving at least £100 million-a-year in correspondence costs. The national ‘Digital Front Door’, currently being led by the Scottish Government as an NHS App-style service for health and social care, will also take advantage of a new secure mailbox to be piloted from December this year.

Signposting to free educational resources from the Edinburgh Clinical Research Facility

The Edinburgh Clinical Research Facility (CRF) is a joint venture between the University of Edinburgh and NHS Lothian. CRF run a variety of in-person and online courses and events covering a diverse range of topics relating to clinical research which can be found on their website here. You can also check the CRF website for signposting to free eLearning courses and online resources available from various providers relating to different aspects of clinical research and innovation.

Nominations closing next month for Scotland's Health Awards 2025!

Nominations are now officially open for Scotland’s Health Awards 2025, offering a unique opportunity to recognise and celebrate the extraordinary individuals and teams who go above and beyond to deliver compassionate, high-quality health and social care across Scotland. Launched at the NHS Scotland Event in Glasgow by Neil Gray MSP, Cabinet Secretary for Health and Social Care, the awards shine a light on the unsung heroes of our health and care services – from frontline staff to those working tirelessly behind the scenes. The 2025 Health Awards includes an Innovation category. All winners will be announced on Thursday 6 November 2025 at the awards ceremony. Deadline for submitting nominations is Midnight on Sunday 17th August 2025.

Futurescot AI Challenge: When it comes to AI in the Scottish public sector, it’s not a one-size fits all – there are technology ‘options’

If you are considering applying for the Scottish public sector AI Challenge, it helps to understand the feasibility of your potential use cases by considering how it can be implemented from a technology perspective. This article provides an overview to what might be a suitable route to consider depending on your particular use case.

It is worth saying from the outset that there are a range of AI technology solutions available to public sector organisations and there is no one-size fits all approach.

Applications for the challenge close on 22nd August 2025.

Generation Scotland Symposium 2025 – Registration Now Open

Generation Scotland are delighted to announce a forthcoming Symposium: Looking back at Generation Scotland’s achievements and learning over the past 20 years. The event will take place on 26th August 2025 from 10:00 – 16:00 at Playfair Library in Edinburgh, with the opportunity to also join online. Generation Scotland is a collaboration between NHS Scotland, the University of Aberdeen, Dundee, Edinburgh and Glasgow, with over 40,000 participants across Scotland. The symposium will bring together founding, past and current researchers, supporters as well as volunteers from across Scotland. Speakers include Professor Cathie Sudlow, Professor Dame Anna Dominiczak, and Professor Andrew Morris. This event is a fantastic networking opportunity

SAVE THE DATE – DigiFest 2025

The Digital Health & Care Innovation Centre (DHI) is delighted to announce that the annual Digifest Conference returns this year to showcase and share knowledge on Scotland’s exciting developments in digital health and care. This year’s DigiFest has the theme, “Leading With A Digital First Mindset”, and will be a one-day in person event to be held at the University of Strathclyde’s Technology and Innovation Centre (TIC) on 11th December 2025. The DHI is facilitating the delivery of DigiFest, supported by the sponsoring division in the Scottish Government (Digital Health & Care).

HISES are on LinkedIn

HISES are on LinkedIn! Keep up to date with the latest news from the South East Innovation Hub and wider Innovation ecosystem in Scotland via our new LinkedIn page.

Follow us: https://www.linkedin.com/company/hises-innovation-hub/

Latest funding opportunities

Check out the latest health and care funding opportunities from across the sector on the funding section of our website.