Our 2022 Bright Ideas in Health Awards winners & finalists

Sponsored by CPI

2022 Winner

Point-of-Care Blood Test for the Pre-hospital Identification of Stroke Patients Suitable for Emergency Thrombectomy Treatment

Pockit Diagnostics innovative blood test “LVOne” identifies LVO strokes within minutes, facilitating rapid treatment. Current LVO stroke identification involves a brain scan which can only be done in hospital and requires a radiologist, whereas this innovation uses a finger prick of blood. Within minutes, this test is able to identify an LVO with 95% accuracy saving 97 minutes on average resulting in better patient outcomes as well as cost and efficiency savings.

The innovators:

• Gonzalo Ladreda, CEO, Pockit Diagnostics
• Edoardo Gaude, CSO, Pockit Diagnostics
• Marcos Ladreda, Product Specialist, Pockit Diagnostics
• Danielle Murphy, Laboratory Scientist, Pockit Diagnostics
• Craig Armstrong, Regulatory Specialist, Pockit Diagnostics
• Chiko Mutepfa, Clinical Test Evaluation Methodologist, NIHR Newcastle
• Dr. Christopher Price, Professor of Stroke and Applied Health Research, Newcastle University
• Dr. Lisa Shaw, Principal Research Associate, Newcastle University
• Dr. Clare Lendrem, Research Associate, Newcastle University
• Dr. Stephen Lynn, Associate Director, AHSN NENC
• Dr. Rachel Dickinson, Communications and Engagement Manager, NIHR Newcastle
• Professor Peter McMeekin, University of Northumbria at Newcastle
• Graham McClelland, North East Ambulance Service
• Peta Heslop, Northumbria Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust

Newcastle University and Pockit Diagnostics

Finalists

Saving More Lives, Giving Transplant Organs Air to Breathe

Organ transplantation enables longer life expectancy and improved quality of life for the patient as well as reducing cost within the healthcare system. Unfortunately, donor organ demand far outstrips supply. ScubaTx is a simple, transportable, affordable, fully automated, organ preservation technology enabling improved preservation and transplantation logistics. Using Persufflation, ScubaTX can maintain organs viability for 24 hours, enabling hospital systems to conduct transplants during typical working hours. ScubaTx’s device addresses the healthcare’s resource constraints of people, money, logistics and space.

The innovators:

ScubaTx Limited in collaboration with, Newcastle University, Aarhus University, University of Arizona, Leiden University and Ohio State University

Halo Gravity Traction Device

Children with severe scoliosis can benefit from weeks in traction to partially “straighten the spine” prior to surgery. This helps to maximise correction with less surgical invasiveness and limits complications. This treatment can be achieved whilst avoiding invasive surgical techniques for children, whilst crucially also allowing mobility. This enhances the quality of life and life expectancy of these children.

The innovators:

• Mr Paul Rushton, Consultant Orthopaedic Spinal Surgeon
• Stuart Duffy, Head of Service, Clinical Technologist (Regional Technical Aid Service, NMPCE)
• Simon Richardson, Head of Service, Clinical Technologist (Mechanical Engineering Service, NMPCE)
• Phillip Wright, Clinical Technologist (Mechanical Engineering Services, NMPCE)
• Rachel Guyll, Deputy Head of Service - Occupational Therapy
• Carolyn Cunningham, Paediatric Surgery Specialty - Specialist Nurse
• Emily Adams, Occupational Therapist

The Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust

2022 Winner

Sunderland Clinical Support Information (CSI)

A lack of quality referral information and significant variability in pathways and referrals was the driving force for a centralised pathway management tool, the Sunderland Clinical Support Information (CSI). Pioneered by Sunderland GP Alliance, working collaboratively with TeamNet, the team developed a bespoke, trusted system which is now in use by over 1,000 members of the primary care workforce in Sunderland. Amongst its benefits, the CSI is improving patient access to services by signposting to best practice, and locally agreed clinical responsibilities, ensuring patients are treated by the right clinician, at the right stage of their illness or condition.

The innovators:

• David Gunion, Project Manager - DFPC
• Mark Beadling, IT Contracts Manager
• Joanna Morton and Jonathan Watkins, Digital Co-ordinators

Sunderland GP Alliance

• James Bell, Heather Kift, James Phillips, Mark Clements, Fiona Watters, Celine Ting, Neil Devlin - GP Writers

Sunderland Clinical Reference Group (CRG)

Sunderland GP Alliance and Sunderland Clinical Reference Group (CRG) in collaboration with: Agilio Software, North ICB/Sunderland Place, All Together Better Sunderland, STSFT.

Finalists

Local Health Index

Recognising the need to understand and address disparities in health between communities within Northumberland and North Tyneside, Northumbria Healthcare created the Local Health Index. Based on the Office for National Statistics Heath Index, the Trust used the national tool to develop their own local version – the first to have been produced in the country. The data-driven framework is helping to tackle health inequalities in a targeted way, planning healthcare improvements where they are needed most by using data from smaller geographical areas. The Trust has already used data to inform decision-making, which has led to reducing inequalities in cancer diagnosis and survival becoming a key priority.

The innovators:

Northumbria Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust

External partners:

RAIDR Waiting Well Dashboard

Working collaboratively, NECS and Newcastle Hospitals have developed an innovative health intelligence tool to tackle the backlog of patients waiting for a procedure or operation. With over 6.8 million people currently on a waiting list in England, the RAIDR Waiting Well tool has the unique functionality to identify patient cohorts with risk factors when awaiting a specific procedure. The system has enabled health and care providers to utilise this data to offer tailored support to individuals based on their needs and to encourage self-care. This has been instrumental to ensure that patients can ‘wait well’ and remain eligible for a procedure.

The innovators:

• Dr. James Prentis, Consultant Anaesthetist, The Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust
• Valerie Maddison, Head of Analytics (Information Services and BI Tools), North of England Commissioning Support
• Marie Irons, Information Solutions Manager, North of England Commissioning Support
• Gary Mitchell, Information Solutions Technical Architect, North of England Commissioning Support

NECS: A Care System Support Organisation and The Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust

Sponsored by NHS Health Education England

2022 Winner

MDT Fetal Wellbeing Education Programme

An education programme designed to improve maternity care, with a focus on fetal wellbeing. The program combines an MDT focused approach, with human factor principles and provides teams with a safe space to reflect on the way they work. By learning together, teams can build trust and respect which is hoped to translate into better team working, a flatter hierarchy, and improved patient outcomes.

The innovators:

• Dr. Vinita Raheja, Fetal Wellbeing Lead Consultant
• Lisa McQueen, Fetal Wellbeing Lead Midwife
• Dr. Margaret Scott, Human Factors Lead
• Jenna Wall, Head of Midwifery

Northumbria Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust

Finalists

Human Factors and Civility Education to Engender Safety Culture Change

Educational resources and training sessions that aim to improve the understanding of non-technical skills and Human Factors, within healthcare. The education programme raises awareness of how poor behaviours and incivility can affect patient safety and can lead to serious incidents. The training targets both medics and non-medics of all levels, who may have not received education in Human Factors before.

The innovators:

• Laura Askins, Postgraduate Clinical Lecturer
• Mr Chris Bridle, Consultant Oral & Maxillofacial Surgeon

South Tees Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust

Enhancing Care for Older People

The EnCOP programme brings formal and informal carers together from across the care system, to help them meet the needs of older people. They work closely with local leaders who can then roll out the EnCOP framework throughout their own organisations. The programme encourages a single shared language, that can be used by everyone in the care system to improve the care of elderly people.

The innovators:

• Lesley Bainbridge, Clinical Lead, NENC ICB on behalf of the NENC Ageing Well Network
• Dr. Claire Pryor, Assistant Professor Adult Nursing, Faculty of Health and Life Sciences, Nursing, Midwifery and Health Department, Northumbria University

North ICP (Gateshead, Newcastle, North Tyneside, Northumberland) 'employed by North ICP (Gateshed, Newcastle, North Tyneside, Northumberland) on behalf of North East North Cumbria Ageing Well Network'

2022 Winner

3D Printing in Trauma and Orthopaedics

Cross sectional imaging used to create 1:1 scale 3D printed models of bone and joint deformity, which are used as a dry run simulation before surgery to ensure all necessary equipment is available, reducing theatre time and facilitating improved clinical care through greater surgical accuracy. Models are also used to educate patients.

The innovators:

• Mr David Ferguson, Consultant Trauma & Orthopaedic Surgeon
• Andrew Simpson, Clinical Scientist
• Tony Alton, Clinical Technologist
• Alistair Levett-Renton, Clinical Scientist
• Dr. Sarah Whitbourn, Head of Clinical Measurement
• Sharon Brown, Innovation Portfolio Coordinator

South Tees Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust in collaboration with Zimmer Biomet and Depuy Synthes

Finalists

See and Treat Skin Cancer Service

A combined same-day biopsy or ‘See and Treat’ service run by Plastics and Dermatology departments to manage two-week wait (2WW) skin cancer referrals, allowing treatment or diagnosis of skin cancer for patients on the day of first presentation to the specialist service.

The innovators:

• Mr Richard Chalmers, Consultant Head and Neck Plastic Surgeon, Trust Clinical Lead for Skin Cancer
• Mr Paul Sugden, Consultant Plastic Surgeon, Departmental Lead for Plastic Surgery
• Dr. Maneesha Vatve, Consultant Dermatologist, Departmental Lead for Dermatology
• Daniel Phillips, Service manager Plastics & Dermatology
• Donna Colledge, RGN, Dermatology & Plastics Matron
• Sara Alderson, RGN Manager Dermatology Outpatients Department
• Charlotte Rose, Service Administrator Dermatology and Plastics

County Durham and Darlington NHS Foundation Trust with the Macmillan Cancer Team and staff in Dermatology outpatients and theatres

‘Hot’ Debriefing: Encouraging rapid post-incident team debriefing following medical emergencies and in-hospital cardiac arrests

Individual members of staff or medical teams are debriefed immediately after medical emergencies and cardiac arrest events, to provide a peer-led team level system of support for the benefit of improved clinical learning and emotional wellbeing.

The innovators:

• Dr. Chris Yates, Anaesthetics Teaching Fellow
• Dr. Margaret Scott, Human Factors and Patient Safety Lead

Northumbria Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust

Sponsored by NIHR Clinical Research Network North East and North Cumbria

2022 Winner

NCBD Stoma Programme: A medley of methodologies across organisations to deliver high impact commercial research

A programme of research to assess a new innovative telemedicine service linked to a stoma device representing Coloplast Ltd’s vision of the future of stoma care. This required the creation of a novel and innovative, global first for the company, involving local and national patient hybrid recruitment solutions and demonstrated an exceptional cross-organisational NHS / NIHR / industrial partnerships.

The innovators:

• Mr Richard Brady, Honorary Senior Clinical Lecturer and Consultant Colorectal IBD Surgeon
• Julia Scott, Senior Research Nurse
• Stephanie Grieveson, Data Manager
• Vithusa Varnakulasingham, Clinical Trial Coordinator
• Joanne Pattison, Research Nurse
• Ruth Christer, Coloplast Clinical Nurse Specialist

The Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust

• Hazel Forsyth, Senior Research Sister and Yan Yiannakou, PRC Newcastle
• Hyder Latif, Medconnect North and NIHR
• Layla McMullan, Newcastle Hospitals JRO team
• Rachel Ainsworth, Head of Market Access, Coloplast Ltd
• Hannah Gagen, Head of Government Affairs & Patient Advocacy, Coloplast Ltd

Finalists

Food Insecurity in Adults with Severe Mental Illness

This co-produced study aimed to gain an understanding of the experiences of adults with Severe Mental Illness (SMI) living within the North of England in relation to food insecurity. It was delivered through a new partnership between Tees, Esk and Wear Valleys NHS Foundation Trust (the sponsor organisation), Teesside University, Newcastle University; and the Centre for Mental Health (Equally Well UK (EW - UK)).

The innovators:

Increasing research exposure to primary care practices and patient populations in North East England

The main aim of the study is to assess the efficacy of two pathways to detect advanced liver fibrosis among patients at increased risk of fatty liver disease (harmful alcohol consumption, obesity, and Type 2 diabetes) in primary care. By taking a collaborative approach across Primary and Secondary Care it will enable increased access to clinical research studies and widespread easy implementation of a liver fibrosis pathway as standard of care. 

The innovators:

The Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust

2022 Winner

Development of a New Hazardous Patient Transport Device

The idea for the AeroPod was developed following the COVID-19 pandemic. It provides a safe and practical way to transport patients who may be infectious, contaminated or immunodeficient. The device is light weight and can be easily transported in ambulance and air ambulance and means patients can be safely moved from one location to another.

The innovators:

• Allison Sykes, Bank Nurse (formerly Senior Nurse Infection Prevention and Control), Churchill Fellow, The Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust
• Russell Clifton, Managing Director, B-B-L Protect Ltd
• Alun Ross, HART Manager, NILO / EPRR Department, North East Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust

The Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust

Finalists

Saving More Lives, Giving Transplant Organs Air to Breathe

ScubaTx is being used to transport organs for donation. Traditional ice boxes can only preserve organs for 3-12 hours whereas the ScubaTx can help them last over 24 hours. This additional time can have a significant impact on the recipient patient outcomes and provides a clinically proven, safe and cost-effective solution.

ScubaTx Limited in collaboration with, Newcastle University, Aarhus University, University of Arizona, Leiden University and Ohio State University

Innovations in Gastroenterology and Endoscopy

County Durham and Darlington NHS Foundation Trust have been working in partnership with Medtronic Inc. for over ten years to test new ways of carrying out endoscopies and gastrointestinal investigations. Over this time, they have trialed new technologies such as capsules and artificial intelligence which are being used to help clinicians detect disease and cancer sooner.

The innovators:

• Professor Anjan Dhar, Professor of Medicine, Consultant Gastroenterologist
• Dr. Francisco Paco-Porras, Clinical Lead for Gastroenterology
• Adrienne Newbery, Endoscopy Unit Manager
• Mark Jones, Associate Director of Operations (Gastroenterology)
• David Hay, Medtronic Inc.

County Durham and Darlington NHS Foundation Trust

2022 Winner

Autism Expert by Experience

A collaboration between South Tyneside Lifecycle Primary Care Mental Health Service (The Lifecycle Service) and Autism in Mind to improve healthcare for autistic children and adults, by inviting an ‘Expert by Experience’ to observe and access all areas of service and provide a report on which areas work well and which require improvement.

The innovators:

• Matthew Rutherford, Me Myself and Autism and Training Facilitator, Autism in Mind
• Carole Rutherford, Director of Services, Autism in Mind
• Emma Lee and Simon Reay, Clinical Leads, South Tyneside and Sunderland NHS Foundation Trust
• Clare Anderson, Matron, South Tyneside and Sunderland NHS Foundation Trust
• David Newell, Directorate Manager with Business Lead, South Tyneside and Sunderland NHS Foundation Trust
• Sarah Golightly, South Tyneside Place Based Commissioning Lead ( Mental Health, Learning Disabilities, Autism ) All Age
• Dr. James Gordon, Clinical Director, NENC ICB South Tyneside

South Tyneside and Sunderland NHS Foundation Trust

Finalists

Community Hearing Screening for Adults with Learning Disabilities

A community-based hearing screening, where patients with learning disabilities can
have their hearing screened at home, in a familiar environment to reduce anxiety and reduce the possibility of serious ear disease. The screening pathway acts as a triage for further hearing referrals and provides clinicians with objective information on a patient’s hearing status.

The innovators:

• Dr. Lynzee McShea, Senior Clinical Scientist (Audiology), South Tyneside and Sunderland NHS Foundation Trust
• Ashley Murphy, Learning Disability and Autism Primary Care Programme Manager, Cumbria, Northumberland, Tyne and Wear NHS Foundation Trust
• Karen Giles, Associate Head of School, Faculty of Health Sciences and Wellbeing, University of Sunderland
• Emma Reid, Helen Wharton and Sandra Parkinson - Clinical Support Assistants (Health Promotion Team), Cumbria, Northumberland, Tyne and Wear NHS Foundation Trust
• Linda Reiling, Senior Commissioning Manager (Mental Health, Learning Disability and Autism), North East and North Cumbria Integrated Care Board

South Tyneside and Sunderland NHS Foundation Trust

Reducing the Physical Health Gap for People with SMI Through Digital Innovation

A portable digital solution to support GPs to improve the accessibility of annual physical health checks (APHC) and address the barriers for people with severe mental illness (SMI) across North East and North Cumbria. Clinical teams can perform high-quality health checks in places where patients feel most comfortable, such as a community setting or their own home.

The innovators:

Health Call

2022 Winner

Northumbria Healthcare Manufacturing Hub

In response to COVID-19 and the national issues in the supply of PPE, a PPE Manufacturing service was created to ensure that the frontline Healthcare workers within the Trust had
a continuous supply of quality PPE to enable them to deliver safe and high-quality care
to patients.

The hub has now produced over 2.2 million hospital gowns which protect Healthcare workers across the country as part of the NHS Supply Chain. The hub has also diversified into producing doctors’ scrubs, theatre hoods, pillows, upholstery and embroidery services for the NHS.

The innovators:

• Sarah Rose, Divisional Director                                      
• Ashley Robinson, Business Development Manager            
• Michelle Triplow-Jones, Product Development Manager
• Lucy Rose, Material Requirement Manager
• Kyle Winn, Head of QA/QC
• Sara Pick, Senior Research Nurse
• Stephen Daly, Warehouse Manager
• Sathish Sethuraman, Junior Operational Services Manager

Northumbria Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust

Finalists

Healthcare Ocean

Healthcare ocean is a group of healthcare, marine science, environmental / public health, commercial shipping and active living professionals, working to ensure ocean health is considered and where appropriate included within healthcare strategy.

The innovators:

• Dr. Richard Hixson, Consultant in Anaesthesia and Critical Care Medicine, County Durham and Darlington NHS Foundation Trust and Co-founder Healthcare Ocean
• Dr. Georgie Sowman, Co-founder Healthcare Ocean

Healthcare Ocean and County Durham and Darlington NHS Foundation Trust

Continuous Remote Monitoring using Wearable Technologies

This technology was designed to assist with the issue of patients who are in hospital but don’t need to be and was co-designed with Medi-bio-sense and a group of senior Cardiology, Respiratory and Frailty clinicians. 

It will offer Acute hospitals the ability to discharge patients faster or avoid the admission totally by using a combination of a 7 day wearable patch, smart-phone, additional bluetooth connected devices and a 24 hour monitoring community outreach team.

The innovators:

• Richard McGregor, Head of Digital and Performance, North Cumbria ICP
• Lisa Gilmour, Clinical Projects Lead, North Cumbria ICP

North Cumbria ICP

2022 Winner

No-One Left Behind: Meeting the changing needs of palliative patients in the community throughout the pandemic and beyond

When the impact of the pandemic closed St Oswald’s Hospice’s Day Services with immediate effect, their team responded swiftly and imaginatively so that patients could continue to receive safe, high-quality care and support at home or in a community setting. The care team rapidly adapted services – and developed new ones – to help some of the region’s most vulnerable patients to continue to live well at home and, in most cases, to achieve their preferred place of death. Not only did these services ensure care was maintained or even improved for patients, the Hospice worked collaboratively with NHS providers to reduce demand on overstretched NHS services.

The innovator:

St Oswald's Hospice

Finalists

Northumbria Healthcare Manufacturing Hub

In response to COVID-19 and the national issues in the supply of PPE, a PPE Manufacturing service was created to ensure that the frontline Healthcare workers within the Trust had a continuous supply of quality PPE to enable them to deliver safe and high-quality care to patients. The hub has now produced over 2.2 million of hospital gowns which protect Healthcare workers not just in our Trust, but across the country as part of the NHS Supply Chain. The hub has also diversified into producing doctors’ scrubs, theatre hoods, pillows, upholstery and embroidery services for the NHS.

The innovators:

• Sarah Rose, Divisional Director                                     
• Ashley Robinson, Business Development Manager            
• Michelle Triplow-Jones, Product Development Manager
• Lucy Rose, Material Requirement Manager
• Kyle Winn, Head of QA/QC
• Sara Pick, Senior Research Nurse
• Stephen Daly, Warehouse Manager
• Sathish Sethuraman, Junior Operational Services Manager

Northumbria Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust

From Bench to Bedside: Collaboration between the NIHR Newcastle MIC and the North East Innovation Lab, part of Newcastle Hospitals

The collaboration between NIHR Newcastle In Vitro Diagnostics Co-operative (NIHR Newcastle MIC) and the North East Innovation Lab (NEIL) began during the COVID-19 pandemic to facilitate an integrated approach to the generation of evidence for new SARS-CoV-2 tests. The collaboration has continued beyond the pandemic to support the development of new improved diagnostic tests for a range of conditions and is ensuring that these diagnostics are adopted into healthcare at pace, for the benefit of patients and the healthcare system.

The innovators:

NIHR Newcastle In Vitro Diagnostics Co-operative (Newcastle MIC), The Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust

2022 Joint Winners

Charlotte Mutton, Specialist Lead Bereavement Midwife

Charlotte joined South Tyneside and Sunderland NHS Foundation Trust during the COVID-19 pandemic as a Specialist Lead Bereavement Midwife. During this time, she has developed the forever cherished care bundle which provides bespoke bereavement training to the multidisciplinary team to improve the experiences of staff providing bereavement care and subsequently the care bereaved families receive. This is reflected through evaluation feedback, reduction in datix reports and improved wellbeing of staff and experiences of bereaved families. Charlotte has created a forever cherished care after bereavement pathway which involves nurturing all involved in the loss of a baby from
14+ weeks to 28 days post-delivery.

South Tyneside and Sunderland NHS Foundation Trust

Caroline Tweedie, Specialist Breast Care Nurse

The pandemic posed many challenges to cancer services at Gateshead Health NHS Foundation Trust and the suspension of these support structures exacerbated the feeling of loneliness and isolation for those experiencing cancer. However, Caroline recognised that this offered an unparalleled opportunity to innovate and digitalise the Trust’s cancer support offering and engage with patients with an online solution to “keep patients connected.” Through delivery of hugely successful virtual clinics, to over 40 cancer podcasts available to stream on Spotify, Caroline has demonstrated time-and-time again her dedication to patient care and her unrelenting passion to support those affected by cancer.

Gateshead Health NHS Foundation Trust

Finalist

Professor Ahmet Fuat - GP and GPSI Cardiology

Prof Fuat embraces new technologies and innovations and develops new clinical pathways to improve the health of patients in Darlington and beyond. He has pioneered new approaches to the identification and management of heart failure harnessing digital search tools, he is leading a novel approach to identification of those with familial hypercholesterolemia incorporating the use of saliva based home testing for the first time together with child parent screening. He participated in the AHSN NENC commissioned FH course at Northumbria University to skill himself to personally deploy FH testing in practice. Prof Fuat has also led the programme of Inclisiran implementation in NENC.