1. From Innovation to Adoption
Lars Sundstrom
Director of
Innovation and Growth WE-AHSN

2. Context: Healthcare Pressure Points
Fiscal realities - unaffordable health systems
Technology advancement digitalisation/genomics
Stratification of patients - personalisation
Increasing focus on prediction and prevention
Patient empowerment - access to knowledge
Shifts in healthcare decision making – cost vs value

3. Why should I care about innovation?
“The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results"

4. From Invention to Impact
Innovation
Improvement
Nesta 2016 I

5. A connected ‘Network of Networks’
England’s 15 AHSNs were set up by NHS England in 2013 and were relicensed from April 2018 to operate as the key innovation arm of the NHS.
We are unique. Our strength lies in our ability to operate locally because of the trust our member organisations have in us. We understand the needs of our health systems and are well placed to broker innovative solutions, while collaborating across England to take what works best and quickly spread it nationally.

6. We are catalysts for innovation
We connect partners across sectors
We create the right environment for change
We are collaborators
We are catalysts for innovation, helping facilitate change across whole health and social care economies – to improve health, drive down the cost of care, and stimulate economic growth.
We connect regional networks of NHS and academic organisations, local authorities, the third sector, industry and citizens - responding to the diverse needs of our patients and populations through partnership and collaboration.
We create the right environment for relevant industries and innovators to work more effectively with the health and social care ecosystem.
We are collaborators – we identify successful innovations in our local and regional communities and support the spread of these across our national Network at pace and scale.

7. Improving health
Our continuing mission is to spread healthcare innovation at pace and scale
Driving down costs
Stimulating economic growth
We spread innovation at pace and scale to achieve our goals of:
improving health
driving down the cost of care
and stimulating economic growth.

8. AHSNs work locally
Each AHSN is embedded in its regional health and care community
AHSNs work locally and benefit from being part of a national network.
Each AHSN is embedded in its regional health and care community, understanding the system and patient needs on the ground.
We develop projects, programmes and initiatives that reflect the diversity of our local populations and healthcare challenges.

9. … and nationally Each AHSN is part of the national AHSN Network:
a unique collaborative of expertise and experience
sharing learning
pooling intelligence
benefitting from a pipeline of emerging and proven solutions from around the country
Each AHSN is also part of the national AHSN Network, linked into a unique collaborative of expertise and experience, sharing learning, pooling intelligence, and benefitting from a pipeline of emerging and proven solutions from around the country.

10. Our collective AHSN impacts – the first five years
Ours is not a short-term challenge but our collective impact to date has been significant. We are already making a difference for patients and the public, for innovators, for clinicians and for the healthcare system.

11. Shared AHSN priorities
Adoption & spread programmes
Delivery of Patient Safety Collaboratives
Delivery of SBRI Healthcare
Delivery of NHS Innovation Accelerator
Supporting uptake of products on Innovation Technology Payment (ITP)
Stimulating economic growth: the Innovation Exchange
Transforming digital health and maximising potential of AI
Working with researchers
Optimising use of medicines
Shared
AHSN
priorities
Our shared priorities across the AHSN Network are:
Adoption and spread programmes
Delivery of the Patient Safety Collaboratives (PSCs)
Delivery of the SBRI Healthcare programme
Delivery of the NHS Innovation Accelerator (NIA)
Supporting uptake of products on the Innovation Technology Payment (ITP)
Stimulating economic growth through the Innovation Pathway and the Innovation Exchange
Transforming digital health and maximising the potential of artificial intelligence (AI)
Working with researchers and research funders
Optimising the use of medicines.

12. The Innovation Exchange
AHSNs support the regional ‘import and export’ of healthcare innovation through our Innovation Exchange.
Four structured elements:
needs definition
innovator support and signposting
real world validation
spread and adoption of supported innovations
AHSNs support the regional ‘import and export’ of healthcare innovation through our Innovation Exchange.
The Innovation Exchange is an AHSN coordinated approach to identify, select and support the adoption of innovations that improve our economy and patients’ lives.
Funded by the government’s Office for Life Sciences, the Innovative Exchange builds on AHSNs’ unique expertise and cross-sector connections, enabling us to identify common challenges and quickly bring people and organisations together to develop, test and spread proven innovation.
The Innovation Exchange identifies innovations for the Accelerated Access Collaborative and for local adoption. The Accelerated Access Collaborative is a national partnership of organisations including NHS England, Department of Health and Social Care, Department for Business Energy and Industrial Strategy, NICE, NHS Improvement and the AHSNs.
The Innovation Exchange has four structured elements:
Needs definition
We support our Sustainability and Transformation Partnerships (STPs) and Integrated Care Systems (ICSs) to identify proven solutions to existing challenges.
Innovator support and signposting
Innovator support is provided by all AHSNs. The Innovation Pathway sets out the range of service offered. There is a consistent and co-ordinated offer to innovators wherever they are identified in the system.
Real world validation
Real world validation is informed by regional and local need and seeks to provide the information and evidence needed to enable adoption of the innovation in a variety of settings.
Spread and adoption of supported innovations
The Innovation Exchange supports the adoption of innovations identified by the Accelerated Access Collaborative. It also identifies and supports the adoption of innovations on a regional and cross-regional basis.

13. Pathways to innovation
Push: I have an idea does anyone want to help me develop it?
Pull: I have a problem does anyone want to help me find a solution?

14. Ready for national spread
Local Innovation Exchange
How mature is the product?
How strong is the clinical evidence?
How affordable is the product?
Does the product provide an improvement over what is being done already?
Level 1
Level 2
Level 3
Level4
Technology Push
Moving innovators up the adoption readiness scale
Clinical Pull
Working with local stakeholders to articulate local priorities
Local
Innovation exchnge
Ready for national spread

15. 4 3 2 1 Four level approach What it looks like in practice ITP ITT NIA
So how do we help those acorns grow?
We have a staged, four level approach to business development.
The resources and support on offer at each level meet the needs of the innovator
I’m one of two Business Development Advisors at the West of England AHSN and my colleague Ben and I, have approximately 5 meetings with innvoators at this Level 1 stage in a week where we learn about their needs and offer. We then consult the wider BD review team to feedback personalised questions, suggestions and offers of BD support. These offers are variedand specific to each innvovaro and may invlude invitations to attend events, reviewing grant applications, searching for appropriate funding opportunities, advice on how to handle Intellectual property, routes to market.
The BD support offers at level 2, 3 and 4 vary between support on funded programmes, feedback from end users in the NHS and introducitons if apprpraite, meetings with AHSN colleagues to disucss approaches to product development and launch and dedicated support for adoption of products on national schemes such as the ITT and NIA.
I’m going to outline a few of these resources in a bit more detail….

16. Innovation and growth team
WEAHSN
Innovation and Growth
You’ll recognise some of these faces and most of us are here today. The team works to understand the needs of our local healthcare system and to supporting innovators to develop ideas and products that could meet clinical challenges being faced in the NHS.

17. Innovation in action
93% of people who received support to identify, adopt and spread innovation feel this was valuable.
We have led the way on NHS IOT test beds and developed new methodology for combinatorial innovation
We have supported over 70 entrepreneurs in the West of England to develop new healthcare solutions and services.
To date, we have helped attract £15m in funding into the West of England for the development of innovative healthcare technologies and solutions.
In the last year we gave business advice to 573 entrepreneurs and companies.
We have developed new approaches to engaging citizens in co- creation and co-design of new healthcare products.
We now have three jointly funded programmes with our LEPs which will provide business assistance to ~70 Companies/Innovators a year.

18. If you want it to stick Innovation has to happen at 3 levels
Technical Innovation – Design tools that people want to use and continue to use
Health System Innovation – Make it easier for the system to take up innovation
Social Innovation – Harness the wisdom of the crowd and democratise innovation
You’ll recognise some of these faces and most of us are here today. The team works to understand the needs of our local healthcare system and to supporting innovators to develop ideas and products that could meet clinical challenges being faced in the NHS.

19. Have Your Vison Realised
You’ll recognise some of these faces and most of us are here today. The team works to understand the needs of our local healthcare system and to supporting innovators to develop ideas and products that could meet clinical challenges being faced in the NHS.

21. Open Innovation and Crowd Sourcing
Generate ideas from many sources
Collaborate to find solutions
Build teams to solve problems
Generate value for all involved
Needs a permissive environment:
Challenging
Competing priorities
Individual/collective rewards
Organisational silos

23. Shared AHSN priorities
Adoption & spread programmes
Delivery of Patient Safety Collaboratives
Delivery of SBRI Healthcare
Delivery of NHS Innovation Accelerator
Supporting uptake of products on Innovation Technology Payment (ITP)
Stimulating economic growth: the Innovation Exchange
Transforming digital health and maximising potential of AI
Working with researchers
Optimising use of medicines
Shared
AHSN
priorities
Our shared priorities across the AHSN Network are:
Adoption and spread programmes
Delivery of the Patient Safety Collaboratives (PSCs)
Delivery of the SBRI Healthcare programme
Delivery of the NHS Innovation Accelerator (NIA)
Supporting uptake of products on the Innovation Technology Payment (ITP)
Stimulating economic growth through the Innovation Pathway and the Innovation Exchange
Transforming digital health and maximising the potential of artificial intelligence (AI)
Working with researchers and research funders
Optimising the use of medicines.

24. SBRI Healthcare
SBRI Healthcare is an NHS England initiative, championed by the 15 AHSNs across England.
It funds the development of new innovations that match health needs.
To date SBRI Healthcare has supported over 180 companies to develop their innovations for use in the NHS and beyond.
The Small Business Research Initiative for Healthcare (SBRI Healthcare) is an NHS England initiative, championed by the 15 AHSNs across England.
The initiative supports a programme of competitions inviting companies to come forward with their ideas and new technologies for known NHS challenges. SBRI Healthcare funds the development of the new innovations that match health needs.
To date SBRI Healthcare has supported over 180 companies to develop their innovations for use in the NHS and beyond.

25. NHS Innovation Accelerator (NIA)
The NIA supports faster uptake and spread of high impact, evidence-based innovations across England’s NHS, benefitting patients, populations and NHS staff.
An NHS England initiative delivered in partnership with the AHSNs, it currently supports 36 ‘Fellows’ representing 37 innovations.
The NIA supports faster uptake and spread of high impact, evidence-based innovations across England’s NHS, benefitting patients, populations and NHS staff.
An NHS England initiative delivered in partnership with the AHSNs, this national accelerator has a unique dual focus on personal development for individuals (‘Fellows’) and bespoke support to spread an innovation. To date the NIA has successfully supported 36 Fellows representing 37 innovations.

26. Innovation and Technology Payment (ITP)
Through the ITP, NHS organisations are supported to adopt innovative products and technologies by removing the financial or procurement barriers.
This NHS England scheme is delivered in partnership with the AHSNs, sponsors, national and international experts.

27. Atlas of Solutions in Healthcare
The AHSN Atlas is an online resource that shares some of the very best examples from across the AHSNs of how to spread high impact innovation across the health and care system.
atlas.ahsnnetwork.com

28. Connect with us