November 2024 Newsletter

Reducing Drug Deaths Innovation SBRI Challenge: Phase 2 Winners Announced

HISES are thrilled to announce the launch of Phase 2 of the Reducing Drug Deaths Innovation Challenge, a £5 million UK-wide initiative aimed at reducing drug-related deaths, that will be managed by NHS Fife. Seven innovative projects have been awarded up to £500,000 each for development over the next 12 months. The selected projects feature cutting-edge technologies including wearable sensors, digital monitoring systems, and novel antidote delivery methods, all designed to prevent and respond to drug overdoses. Professor Alexander Baldacchino from the University of St Andrews will serve as Clinical Lead. This SBRI challenge aligns with the Scottish Government’s National Mission on Drugs. Professor Dame Anna Dominiczak, Chief Scientific Advisor for Health, Scottish Government, commented: “Tackling drug-related deaths is a priority for NHS Scotland. By harnessing expertise across the UK, we can develop new technologies to drive prevention initiatives.”

Children and Young People Remote Asthma SBRI Challenge: Phase 2 Applications Open

HISES are thrilled to announce that Phase 2 applications for the Children and Young People Remote Asthma SBRI Challenge are open to our two participating companies, RedStar AI Ltd and QIoT Ltd. In Phase 1, both companies worked towards developing creative solutions, and unlocking exciting opportunities for the NHS. Both companies are now invited to apply for contracts for prototype development and early clinical evidence to refine their solutions, foster meaningful collaborations, and ultimately deliver tangible benefits to patients and the care they receive. We anticipate that Phase 2 will commence on Monday 27th January 2025. We will provide further updates once the selection process has concluded, and we can reveal the Phase 2 competition winners.

Improving Hip Fracture Outcomes Using Data SBRI Challenge: Phase 2 Restarts

HISES are thrilled to announce that Phase 2 of the HISES Hip Fracture SBRI Challenge, led by Prof. Alasdair MacLullich, has restarted, and is expected to complete by 22nd May 2025. In Phase 2, NHS Lothian are working with industry partner RedStar AI Ltd to develop a system that gathers routinely collected health data and provides decision support functionalities at key decision points in the hip-fracture care pathway from admission to rehabilitation. Red Star aim to build a clinical system that is based on user needs and integrated with live data to develop a working prototype of what a future clinical system could look like.

HISES working with industry partner to provide mental health services for our young people

As part of the ‘Innovating Mental Health Services in Scotland’ SBRI Challenge, HISES are currently working with industry partner Wysa for the second phase of the challenge. Wysa have developed a clinically validated app which uses AI to support emotional health and wellbeing. Phase 2 user testing and evaluation is currently underway with the app being rolled out in 6 secondary schools in Edinburgh and 5 secondary schools in Fife. Further information on their work and the use of AI therapy has recently been published in an article in the Sunday post.

Key DataLoch enhancements – November 2024

DataLoch is a data service that has been developed by the University of Edinburgh and NHS Lothian to bring together routine data collected as part of people’s day-to-day interactions with health and social care services. A crucial part of DataLoch’s service focusses on making health and care data research-ready as well as directly supporting NHS services.

Significantly improved prescriptions data allow a more complete understanding of the patient journey, while new non-medical data enable projects to explore other influences on health and wellbeing. DataLoch is also actively encouraging researchers to get in touch if they cannot find the hospital data, they are looking for in DataLoch’s catalogue. In addition to the new data opportunities, you can learn about the DataLoch Cancer service, DataLoch’s support for frontline homelessness services, and a recently launched training module for those preparing to work with health data within their projects.

Innovation Centres Roadshow 2024/25 - East of Scotland: Digital Health & Care Focus

Join us at Edinburgh College’s Sighthill Campus on 27th November 2024 for the first of four regional Innovation Centres Roadshows! This event kicks off a new decade of transformative work by Scotland’s national innovation centres: Digital Health & Care Innovation Centre (DHI), Built Environment – Smarter Transformation (BE-ST), The Data Lab (TDL), and Industrial Biotechnology Innovation Centre (IbioIC). Expect a day full of insights and knowledge exchange, with engaging speakers, thought-provoking panel discussions, and interactive breakout sessions. Don’t miss the chance to network with a diverse group of stakeholders and organisations.

DDI initiative surpasses innovation goal by fourfold, five years early

The Data-Driven Innovation (DDI) initiative has exceeded a key government objective to drive innovation by supporting businesses secure more than £200 million of investments – four times the initial target. As part of the Edinburgh and South East Scotland City Region Deal signed in 2018, the DDI initiative, which is delivered by the University of Edinburgh and Heriot-Watt University, was set the goal of supporting more than 400 entrepreneurs raise a minimum of £50 million within ten years. Over the course of five years, the Universities have provided specialist programmes and initiatives to help 500 cutting-edge companies raise funds to boost their work to drive innovation. Half of the funding has been secured by businesses registered within the city region area.

Digital Health & Care Fest 2024 Programme

DigiFest is Scotland’s annual Digital Health and Care knowledge exchange event, organised by the Scottish Government’s Digital Health and Care Division. DigiFest24 will combine a programme of free-to-attend, virtual and in-person satellite sessions, from October 2024 and virtual conference, held over 4-5 December 2024. DigiFest takes a multi stakeholder perspective setting out the direction of travel for digital health, housing and care in Scotland and shares work from Scotland, the wider UK and internationally.

Project CAELUS update

Project CAELUS is continuing to break new ground for Scotland with drones flying laboratory samples across the Firth of Clyde for the first time. Live flying took place between University Hospital Crosshouse in Kilmarnock to the Arran War Memorial on the Isle of Arran. Watch it here. Building on the live flight trials between NHS Lothian and NHS Borders, work continues throughout the project using drones to rapidly transport medical supplies and diagnostic samples between mainland hospitals and remote or rural areas.

Have your say - resources for business Artificial Intelligence (AI) projects

Views are being sought on the further development of the Scottish AI Playbook, on what information, resources, guidance and support businesses operating in Scotland need in order to implement ethical and responsible AI projects to improve business processes, efficiencies, or to support businesses to develop and grow. The Scottish AI Alliance wants to better understand the needs of businesses operating in Scotland, along with any gaps in information and advice available to businesses looking to implement AI into their operations. Stakeholders are invited to contribute their views until 30th November 2024.

Recruitment to Fellowships in Clinical AI – Applications open!

NHS Education for Scotland (NES) works in collaboration with Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust, to access the fellowship in Clinical Artificial Intelligence (Clinical AI). Fellows are recruited competitively for this 12-month programme, which is integrated part-time alongside clinical work and supports the clinical workforce to benefit and upskill in this sphere.

Recruitment to cohort four of this fellowship [entry August 2025] is open now with a deadline of 19th December 2024 to submit applications. NES is funding 3 places, 2 for medical trainees and 1 for an Allied Health Professional. Informal enquiries will be managed via the NES Innovation team on nes.learningandinnovation@nhs.scot

NHS Clinical Entrepreneur Programme – Applications closing soon!

Are you a Scottish healthcare worker interested in innovation? The NHS Clinical Entrepreneur Programme (CEP) is once again open to Scottish innovators with applications for cohort 9 with a deadline of 29th October 2024, with the programme starting on 5th March 2025. Budding entrepreneurs from Scotland are invited to apply for this ground-breaking programme that is helping bring innovations into the NHS to improve patient care. This year long programme is free and open to all the NHS Scotland workforce. It provides learning, opportunities, and experiences through which entrepreneurs develop the commercial skills and knowledge to accelerate their innovations that will, in turn, help transform patient care, as well as providing them with the entrepreneurial knowledge and experience that will help them in their day jobs.

DigitalScotland 2024 Conference

DigitalScotland 2024 will take place on 26th November 2024, at the Edinburgh International Conference Centre. DigitalScotland 2024 is the leading forum to hear about how digital and data are transforming the way our public services operate and fulfil their mission to be modern, responsive, and designed around the needs of citizens. Designed to bring together digital and data professionals from across the public sector, the full-day event is a must-attend and features a fantastic line-up of 50+ speakers, 50+ industry partners and 1,200+ attendees to explore the latest trends, share insights and showcase innovative solutions to the challenges facing Scotland’s citizens.

Holyrood Digital Health and Care Scotland Conference 2025

Holyrood’s flagship Digital Health and Care Conference returns to Dynamic Earth on 18th and 19th February 2025. Bringing together representatives from across the public and third sectors with those working in industry, Holyrood’s annual Digital Health and Care conference will consider the latest policy developments and technological advancements. Through a range of panel sessions, masterclasses and keynote addresses, delegates will have the opportunity to engage in discussions around remote monitoring, e-prescribing, AI and cyber security. It provides a platform to collaborate and share learnings as we look to drive innovation and speed up implementation of technology within the health and social care space.

Holyrood Annual Digital Health and Care Awards 2025 – Nominations Open!

As well as the Digital Health and Care Conference, Holyrood will be hosting the Digital Health and Care Awards on 18th February 2025. This is a wonderful opportunity to celebrate the achievements of those working within the digital health, care, and housing sectors, so if you know of any inspiring individuals or organisations, nominate now!

The awards categories for 2025 are as follows:

• Data Driven Innovation Award
• Technology Enabled Independent Living Award
• Industry Collaboration Award
• Digital Health and Care Team Award
• Digital Inclusion Award
• Digital Service Transformation Award
• Digital Leader Award

Nominations will close on Monday 6th January 2025 at 23.59 and the shortlist will be announced on Monday 20 January 2025.

British Heart Foundation Healthcare Innovation Fund Round 3 – Closing soon!

Through the Healthcare Innovation Fund, The British Heart Foundation (BHF) is seeking to test and evaluate innovative approaches to the delivery of improved services for patients with cardiovascular disease. Round 3 closes on Monday 4th November 2024 at midday.

Previous calls have sought applications on ideas which:

• Identified an unmet need that required further scoping and consensus building around need and potential solutions.
• Had been scoped by an appropriate group of stakeholders and were ready to be tested and evaluated in practice.
• Had been tested locally by an appropriate group of stakeholders and were ready for early stage of scaling.
  Applications must be supported by an NHS Regional Innovation Hub.

NIHR Invention for Innovation (i4i) Product Development Awards Call 29 Stage 1 – Applications Open!

The i4i Product Development Awards (PDA) supports collaborative research and development of medical devices, in vitro diagnostic devices, and high-impact patient-focused digital health technologies for use in the NHS or social care systems. PDA are researcher-led and support early product development and real-world evaluation. The expected focus of a project funded by PDA is one or more of the following:

Product development required to enable technologies for clinical use or use in social care
Clinical development of a laboratory-validated technology
Real-world evaluations to accelerate the development and uptake of innovative products, which already have demonstrated safety and efficacy
Projects must have demonstrated proof-of-concept as a minimum, which is generally described as TRL3. The deadline for this call is on Thursday 5th December 2024 (13:00 BST).

Public Sector Data Summit 2025

Holyrood Connect’s annual Public Sector Data Summit is returning to Dynamic Earth, Edinburgh for another year! Join us on 13th March 2025 to hear about the latest developments in data and AI and learn how to maximise their potential. Through a variety of session formats, including keynote addresses, interactive panel discussions and masterclasses, you will hear valuable insights on making the most of your data, how to store it securely, and how to address concerns around AI and ethics.

Latest funding opportunities

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