Four of the UK’s more innovative HealthTech companies have spoken out about how technology can ease the pressure on the NHS.
Patchwork, Endoscope-I, Dr Julian and MindMate have all been included in BusinessCloud’s HealthTech Innovators 101 list, which will be published in the next edition of the magazine.
The list shines a light on the disruptive UK companies that are using tech to transform the health sector.
Dr Anas Nader is the CEO and co-founder of Patchwork, an app which helps hospitals fill vacant shifts and he said he was ‘absolutely delighted’ to be included in the list.
He said: “We are facing unprecedented levels of demand at a time when resources are more stretched than ever.
“As a team, we know first-hand just how tough it is to work as an NHS clinician. You care deeply about your patients and the institution, but doctors and nurses are also reaching breaking point.
“Creating ways to improve work-life balance, giving clinicians more time to spend with patients, improving support networks, and reducing admin burdens will all help to create a workplace where staff can thrive instead of simply survive. And we believe tech will play a crucial role in that.”
Dr Nader said the combination of ground-breaking technology and the dedication of NHS staff could be transformative.
“At the end of the day, it’s the hard-working doctors, nurses, physios, pharmacists, AHCPs, and management teams who are, and will always be, the driving force behind the delivery of brilliant NHS care,” he said.
“But tech has a vital role to play in enabling this care to be delivered. We must see tech as the infrastructure that supports the delivery of great care. In this regard, it’s fundamental to the future of our health service.”
Mental health app Dr Julian is on a mission to make mental healthcare affordable and accessible to all.
Dr Julian Nesbitt is the CEO and co-founder of Dr Julian, which has brought together a team of experienced therapists/psychologists to offer psychological therapy, through online video sessions and instantaneous text.
He told BusinessCloud: “The NHS in particular is a huge organisation which has complex needs, there are many innovations in tech that can help solve issues.
“We have an ageing population with an ever increasing healthcare need where we must find efficiency savings to keep the NHS alive. Technology can play a key role in helping to save costs and make the system far more efficient.
“We must innovate within the NHS to continue to improve care. Utilising technology is a key way to help achieve this.”
MindMate (pictured top) have created an app for baby boomers to manage brain health and related health conditions such as Alzheimer’s and other forms of dementia. The app has more than 1.2 million users and is featured as the number one health app in 17 countries around the globe.
Co-founder and COO Patrick Renner said: “The healthcare sector is still very slow when it comes to adoption of new technology. The current regulative landscape in regard to data collection and processing makes it also very hard for young companies to use innovative business models.
“Tech can play a major part in saving costs, which will be the major challenge for the NHS in the next couple of years.
“The use of data for process optimization in large organisations such as the NHS and early disease detection on the physician’s side will make a real difference.”
Stoke-based Endoscope-I produces a smartphone attachment for medics to photograph what they see in patients’ ears.
Head and neck surgeon Ajith George said: “For an SME running on a limited budget, this recognition and publication is invaluable and inevitably puts us in a stronger position when putting forward new innovative business plans to hospital trusts and CCGs.
“Staffing is a major issue and the workforce has been drastically hit by Brexit. (Tech in the NHS) follows the natural progression of where everything is heading, we just need to ensure it’s clinician driven and not technology driven.”