News Article

A novel idea for improving the treatment of leg ulcers has won first prize in this year’s Bright Ideas in Health Awards. 

The device allows for easy use by community nurses in patients’ homes, will save nurses time and improve the treatment of a common and painful problem.

Current treatment involves soaking the area with medicated solution from a bucket, a clumsy process which prompted Maureen Scott, Community Staff nurse at Forest Hall Health Centre (North Tyneside Primary Care Trust) to develop her ideas for a ‘leg bath’.

The device scooped £2500 in the innovative technology or device category and is being further developed in association with Integrated Design Labs (DLAB), based at the Institute of Digital Innovation at The University of Teesside.

Second place – winning £1500 - went to an improved cannula dressing which allows a line to be clearly identified, monitored and secured. The dressing was developed jointly by ITU nurses Patt Hogg and Barbara Jameson from the The University Hospital of North Durham.

A team from the Regional Medical Physics Department at Newcastle’s Freeman Hospital took third place and £1000 for their ‘Electronic Home Flow Meter’ which allows men to test themselves for urinary tract disorders in the privacy of their own home.

Husband and wife team Rebecca Nisbet-Forster and Matthew Forster from Northumberland Tyne & Wear NHS Trust were highly commended for the development of drip bag covers and stands which are designed to stop children becoming afraid when in hospital.

Also highly commended, was equipment to help occupational therapists raise the height of patients’ beds at home, developed by Michael Broadhurst and Graham Jefferson of The Newcastle upon Tyne NHS Foundation Trust.
There were joint winners from City Hospitals Sunderland NHS Foundation Trust in the innovative service category each winning £2500.

Stephanie Smith and Linda Selby from Sunderland Royal Hospital introduced a work experience programme for school leaving students with profound learning disabilities.

The programme offers students from special schools in the Sunderland area an introduction to the world of work through placements in hospital post rooms, administrative departments and laboratories.

Offering practical work experience and a sense of achievement for the students, the programme also helps break down barriers and challenge stereotypes of students with severe learning disabilities.

In third place - winning £1000 - was a software analysis tool which allows Trusts to plan staff, room and equipment allocation to prevent any breach of the new 18 week referral to treatment national government guideline. The ‘Capacity and Demand Analyzer’ was developed by Service Improvement Manager, Jon Stacey, at the Royal Victoria Infirmary in Newcastle.

A board game which can be used to reinforce health messages about exercise, medication, diet and general lifestyle for patients with lung conditions developed by Sue Pascoe and Neil Murphy at Bensham Hospital in Gateshead was highly commended alongside a DVD which can be used to reassure parents of children born with cleft palates.

The awards are organised by the NHS Innovations North team at technology transfer company RTC North and showcase the most exciting new services and devices developed by employees in the region’s NHS Trusts.

Professor Sir Miles Irving, Chairman of NHS Innovations North, said: “Once again we are celebrating the achievements of NHS employees throughout all sectors of the Service in the North East who have risen to the challenge of telling us how, and where, they believe that improvements to the service provided to patients can be achieved either through a technical innovation or through better methods of delivery.

“Where feasible, many of these ideas have, over this time, been taken forward by NHS Innovations North, working through the expert base provided by RTC North, to implementation and where appropriate commercial development.”

In its fifth year, the competition has been organised by NHS Innovations North, which was established to identify and commercialise intellectual property within the health service, and deliver new product ideas to the region’s manufacturers.

Backed by the region’s NHS Trusts, this year’s awards are sponsored by the Centre of Excellence for Life Sciences (Cels) and the Healthcare Network North East, UDL LLP Patent Attorneys, Watson Burton LLP Law Firm, One North East, Hargreaves Elsworth Patent Attorneys and The Centre for Design Research at Northumbria University.

Mike Asher, CEO of Cels, said: “Cels is delighted to be sponsoring the Bright Ideas in Health Awards again this year. As usual there has been a very high calibre of applications for these awards and look forward to helping the participating organisations drive their ideas forward.

“Cels is the organisation driving the growth of North East England’s healthcare economy, and we strongly believe that supporting innovation at grass-roots level is crucial to the success of the healthcare industry as a whole.”

For more information about NHS Innovations North and the Bright Ideas in Health Awards call Barbara Marriner on 01915164400, email: enquiry@nhsinnovationsnorth.org.uk or visit:
http://www.nhsinnovationsnorth.org.uk/awards.asp