An IT system that helps hospitals to manage out-of-hours care, and a digital platform for dementia patients, were just two of the innovative solutions singled out for praise at the 2015 SEHTA Healthcare Business Awards.
Winners from the five award categories were all honoured at the prestigious 2016 Kent Surrey Sussex AHSN Expo & Awards, which took place at the Lancaster Hotel in London last week.
Commenting on the ceremony, Dr David Parry, chief executive of SEHTA, said: “Once again our awards have demonstrated the excellence of small health technology companies in the South East. It’s a primary aim of SEHTA to help such companies to access public and private sector markets with their innovative products and services”.
The winner of this year’s Export Award went to AbBaltis for its achievements in exporting services in the IVD and Bio-tech markets, by offering innovation, reliable and quality biologically-based products.
Nervecentre Software’s Hospital at Night electronic task management platform was the winner of the Innovation Award. Hospital at Night provides visibility of out-of-hours tasks requested and completed, their urgency, and the staff available to complete them in real time, right across the hospital. Ward nurses requiring support enter a request onto the online software. Hospital at Night co-ordinators then receive the request electronically via a PC or tablet, triage for urgency and skill required, and assign the task to the relevant doctor, nurse or technician within seconds.
The Award for Outstanding Achievement went to Rescon Technologies for its achievements in taking its Lincus platform from an R&D project into a sellable product, with sales within the NHS, local government, and charity sectors.
The winner of the Partnership with the NHS Award went to Ixico for the MyBrainBook digital platform. MyBrainBook has been developed for people living with dementia, which is evaluated in real-world settings. It has been designed with input from patients, their carers and professionals to promote self care and prevent escalating need. Ixico is also working with the Health Innovation Network and NHS111 to ensure emergency and out-of-hours services have real-time access to MyBrainBook information to ensure appropriate pathways are chosen, avoiding A&E admissions where possible.
The final gong, the Award for Best Start-Up was presented to Walk with Path for its PathFeel shoe insole. Path Feel is an advanced corrective and diagnostic shoe insole to promote, correct and monitor walking in individuals with peripheral neuropathy. The insole is designed to respond to pressure applied through the feet, and acts by providing specific localised vibration (haptic feedback) to the sole of the foot to enhance or restore the sensory stimulation required for the individual to ‘feel the floor’ and achieve balance. This, in turn, reduces the risk of falls.
The winners will now be entered into the national MedilinkUK Awards taking place on 20 April at the Ricoh Arena in Coventry, which is part of the 2016 Med-Tech Innovation Expo.