This year, the Building Better Healthcare Awards, continues to recognise the efforts of innovative manufacturers and suppliers, with three trophies up for grabs in the hugely-popular Product class.
This year the Product awards have been designed to reflect the key challenges facing the health and social care sector. For example, the judges are looking for products and other innovations that are helping trusts to meet the Government’s demands for a paperless NHS.
The Award for Best Communications or IT Product will be presented to communications and IT solution that is helping to significantly enhance health and social care services.
Entries can include, but are not restricted to nurse call systems, graphics, wayfinding solutions, telecommunications and all IT hardware and software including ‘apps’
The technologies must be new, innovative, fit for the healthcare market, and entries must demonstrate the involvement of patients, staff and other key stakeholders in the design process. They must also meet current health and social care priorities – for example reducing reliance on paper, reducing carbon emissions, improving document turnaround times, helping with auditing practices, providing joined-up healthcare etc).
There are then two other categories – Best Interior Product and Best Exterior Product.
Entries in the Exterior category, can include, but are not restricted to, cladding systems, drainage systems, shelters and canopies, paving and landscaping products; while in the Interiors category the judges will be looking for examples of innovations such as surface products (walls, ceilings, flooring); doors and windows; fixtures and fittings; furniture products etc.
Across all categories, products must have any necessary regulatory authority and have come onto the market between 1 June 2014 and 1 April 2016.
Jo Makosinski, editor of Building Better Healthcare and organiser of the awards, said: “The Product category always attracts entries from a wide spectrum of companies.
“Companies, when creating and marketing products to the NHS, in particular, must prove that they meet current health priorities, and at present these revolve around making financial and operational efficiencies, improving outcomes and the environment for patients, helping to reduce healthcare associated infections, reducing carbon emissions, and reducing reliance on paper notes and records, which is how we have chosen this year’s categories.”
Commenting on the entry process, she added: “When completing the forms, it is vital you explain clearly how the entry meets all the bulletpoints set out in the judging criteria as that additional information enables the judges to picture the product when it is in operation.
“It is important that the entry is completed by a senior member of the team as they are in the best position to describe the benefits and the thinking behind the project. In addition, entries need to be clearly written and succinct; dealing only with the details and impact of the project and how it will demonstrate improvements on what is currently available. This should be supported by genuine comments from patients and clinicians. If these guidelines are followed then the judges will have sufficient information on which to make an informed decision. If any of this information is lacking, then it could mean entries not getting through to the final stages of judging.”
Click here to read more about the awards and the judging criteria.