Support for innovators

Health Innovation East Midlands Digital Health Accelerator supports companies to spread their digital health technologies and innovations, with a tailored package of support available to the successful applicants.

Successful candidates can benefit from specialist training, one-to-one support, and opportunities to showcase their products with NHS decision-makers and influencers.

Find out more about the programme.

East Midlands Health Innovation Network Accelerator programme

We run the East Midlands Accelerator programme in collaboration with Pioneer Group. This programme is for NHS / clinical entrepreneurs and healthcare innovators/start-ups. The programme consists of two elements, a Pre-Accelerator and an Accelerator programme. 

The Pre-Accelerator is designed to help those looking for structured guidance around how to progress their innovative healthcare ideas and concepts. Developing pioneering medical technology and transforming healthcare takes more than just an idea and a proactive approach, there are lots of elements to take into consideration.

The Pre-Accelerator is a two-and-a-half-day programme where innovators explore how to:

• Carry out customer discovery
• Develop a business value proposition
• Commercialise your idea
• Identify funding opportunities

For more information and to register please Pioneer Group's website.

Innovators from the Pre-Accelerator then have the chance of progressing to the Accelerator programme.

The Accelerator is an eight-week programme which will build on the learnings from the Pre-Accelerator, in order for companies to progress their ideas to commercialisation. Companies will also have the opportunity to win £100,000 of support and gain access to Pioneer Group's network of key industry figures, senior executives, investors and entrepreneurial peers.

This is a competitive process and companies who have completed the Pre-Accelerator are required to apply and will need to pitch their ideas in front of an expert panel.

We can signpost innovators to a wide range of funding opportunities to support developments. Sign up to our funding newsletter to receive regular updates. 

We have an experienced public and patient leadership team that work across our work programmes and projects to ensure that needs of patients can be taken into consideration when introducing new services and innovations into healthcare. 

If you would like advice on involving and getting the perspectives of patients in your innovation then please contact us. 

If your company requires specialist advice, we can signpost you to services that can support if you are wanting to expand sales into the NHS or public health markets. We can signpost you to support services who can provide advice on how to commercialise your product or device.  

We were instrumental in establishing the Centre for Healthcare Equipment and Technology Adoption (CHEATA) - hosted by Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust - and continue to signpost small enterprises to their expertise. For more information the CHEATA website.

As well as funding regional support programmes and providing advice and signposting within the East Midlands, we can also help individuals and businesses to obtain national support to develop their innovations and access NHS markets. 

The following opportunities are provided nationally, please contact us for more information or if you would like our help in making an application to these programmes of support

• Accelerated Access Collaborative (AAC)
  The AAC is a national, fast-track route into the NHS for ‘breakthrough’ medicines and technologies co-ordinated by a unique partnership comprising representatives of healthcare landscape organisations and the health technology industry.
  
  Partners include NHS England, Department of Health and Social Care, Department for Business Energy and Industrial Strategy, NICE, NHS Improvement and the HINs. Each year, the AAC selects a small number of the innovations put forward for coordinated spread across all 15 HINs - saving NHS money, benefiting patients and supporting national economic growth.
• SBRI Healthcare
  This provides funding and support for commercial innovators at early stages of development - from initial feasibility to product testing and development - so technologies reach the NHS quicker. Funding and support is awarded via regular competitions, focused on major healthcare priorities.
• NHS Innovation Accelerator (NIA)
  Led by NHS England and the AHSNs, since 2015 the NIA has spread more than 32 innovations internationally - including within 2,121 NHS sites - creating 436 jobs and attracting £134.4m external funding. It recruits a number of ‘fellows’ every year.

When working in any role in the NHS, you are exposed to challenges and barriers and as a result NHS staff often produce the best ideas to transform services and save the NHS money.

We offer advice and support to NHS Entrepreneurs, from initial idea to successfully launching a healthcare product, device or service. We’ll guide you through every step and advise you on which support is most appropriate for you at each stage, whether that’s formal training, 1-1 development sessions or signposting to our partners.

If you’re an NHS member of staff and have a healthcare idea or innovation, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

NHS Clinical Entrepreneur Programme (NHS CEP)

This programme is a free entrepreneurial work force development programme aimed at NHS staff and healthcare professionals.

The programme is part of the Accelerated Access Collaborative (AAC) which brings together industry, government, regulators, patients and the NHS to remove barriers and accelerate the introduction of new ground-breaking treatments and diagnostics which have the potential to transform care. 

You can find out more about the programme here.

If you have an idea or innovation to improve healthcare, get in Contact our Innovation Exchange and Commercial team to discuss how we can support.