• Manchester Royal Infirmary for providing dialysis machines at home;
• MRC, Cancer Cell Unit Cambridge for early diagnosis of throat cancer; and
• NHS Bristol for their work in reducing wastage of prescribed nutritional medicine.

Two further applicants were Highly Commended by the NHS Innovation Challenge Prizes Expert Panel. They will not win an award but the panel wanted to recognise the high calibre of their work:

• University Hospitals Coventry and Warwickshire for an Intervention Package to reduce pre-34-week deliveries
• Red Bank Group Practice, Radcliffe, Manchester for the implementation of a personal list system such that between 85% and 90% of appointments requested are with their usual GP

Winners stories:

• Manchester Royal Infirmary won an award in the ‘Increasing independence for those with kidney failure’ challenge. Their innovation was to substantially increase the number of patients receiving home haemodialysis.. A story that poses the case for change; if we carry on as we are it will cost the NHS £45,629 per patient per annum to come into hospital and be put on a dialysis machine. Using these special machines at home reduces costs significantly to £29,289.
• MRC Cancer Cell Unit, Cambridge won an award in the ‘Earlier Diagnosis of Cancer’ challenge. A Cytosponge is a simple pill/sponge placed on a string which patients swallow so that doctors can get a sample/swab from their Oesophagus to test for throat cancer. Every time a patient presents at their GP with potential throat cancer symptoms the doctor refers them to the hospital for an endoscopy, which costs £600. The Cytosponge costs just £25. The 6000 cases of throat cancer recorded per year nationally would cost £3.6 million per year if every patient had an endoscopy. If they were all tested with the Cytosponge, it would cost just £150,000, an annual saving in excess of £3.4m.
• NHS Bristol won an award in the “Reducing Waste by Better Use of Prescribing Technology” challenge. NHS Bristol spend roughly £722,000 per year on nutritional supplements for patients. However, by innovatively using a software programme readily available in the NHS, the team innovatively logs the prescribing behaviours of patients using through ‘ScriptSwitch’. The hospitals can then cascade this information to local GP surgeries so they can understand people’s nutritional drug taking patterns and can save £13,000 per month across the NHS Bristol area which equates to £156,000 per annum.

The device helps clinicians to safely and securely hold the eye in place whilst administering the injection. It also helps to accurately guide the injection into the correct part of the eye via small holes in the device, which are arranged in the exact positions, so as to maximise the effect of the drug and minimise potential harm to the patient.

The device attracted interest from numerous commercial organisations that MidTECH had approached and a deal was eventually struck with SD Healthcare. SD Healthcare will be manufacturing and distributing the Eye Injection Aid and it will be used for ophthalmic injections nationwide in 2011.

The value of the awards will vary and reflect the nature of the challenge and the benefit of the innovation to the NHS and its patients. All award winners must demonstrate the innovative value of their ideas to the NHS.

The first set of challenges will involve finding innovative solutions for delivering treatment and care. Throughout the year, more challenges will be added.

To find out more about the Challenge Prize Programme, and to see the specific challenges set for the areas listed above, please visit the Institute for Innovation & Improvement website http://www.challengeprizes.institute.nhs.uk/

Please note the closing date for this round is 24th January 2011.

(From left) BBC Radio WM presenter Joanne Malin tries out the 'Teggy' with Dr Margaret Goodman, research facilitator, and Natasha Wileman, research and development business manager, at University Hospitals Coventry and Warwickshire NHS Trust.

MidTECH Innovation Award 2010 winners Dr Margaret Goodman (left), research facilitator, and Natasha Wileman, research and development business manager, with their trophy and the 'Teggy' invention.

A trailblazing toothbrush invented by staff at University Hospitals Coventry and Warwickshire NHS Trust to make life more comfortable for patients has triumphed at a prestigious awards ceremony.

The ‘Teggy’ mouth care device project, led by Natasha Wileman and Dr Margaret Goodman, won the £4,000 top prize at the 2010 MidTECH NHS Innovation Awards, held last night (Thurs November 25th) at Birmingham’s Botanical Gardens.

Runners-up, each winning £2,000 for the further development of their projects, were innovations by staff from North Staffordshire Combined Healthcare NHS Trust, Stoke-on-Trent Community Health Services and University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust.

A total of more than 50 entries were received by MidTECH from NHS organisations in Birmingham, Solihull, the Black Country, Staffordshire, Coventry, Warwickshire, Herefordshire, Worcestershire and Shropshire.

Twelve were shortlisted for the final and the award winners were unveiled by BBC Radio WM presenter Joanne Malin at the Oscars-style ceremony.

Barry Sturman-Mole, chief executive of MidTECH, said: “We were bowled over by the sheer number and quality of entries this year and it was an extremely hard task to choose the ultimate winners.

“The finalists came from a wide variety of health care roles and they showed just how innovative and dedicated local NHS staff are in designing and developing new ways to improve care for patients.”

Winning entry, the ‘Teggy’, was developed by Natasha Wileman, research and development business manager, and Dr Margaret Goodman, research facilitator at University Hospitals Coventry and Warwickshire NHS Trust.

They set about the project after the hospital’s chaplain, the Rev Kirsteen Macaulay, commented that there should be a more modern and comfortable way of cleaning patients’ mouths after watching nurses and support workers struggling to brush people’s teeth.

Dr Goodman explained: “Patients who cannot clean their own mouths need assistance from nurses and healthcare assistants to keep their mouths clean and comfortable and usually this is done with a standard toothbrush and fluoride toothpaste.

“But normal toothbrushes can be hard, inflexible and dry quickly inside the mouth, especially in patients who are already debilitated by their illness.

MidTECH Innovation Award 2010 winners Natasha Wileman (left), research and development business manager, and Dr Margaret Goodman, research facilitator, demonstrate the 'Teggy'.

“This makes it more difficult for staff to help patients, making their mouths painful and uncomfortable.

“That’s why we developed the Teggy, which incorporates a water reservoir in the base, which when squeezed emits a thin mist of water into the patient’s mouth via the soft bristles.

“It has an angled and flexible neck and a hygienic cover to protect it.  All of this leads to better health and comfort for patients, making the whole experience more pleasant for all concerned.”

Natasha said: “We are ecstatic about winning the MidTECH Innovation Award 2010 and hope it will help us to turn our prototype Teggy into a real product that will improve the comfort and wellbeing of patients – not just at our hospital but maybe even around the world.

“The £4,000 prize will certainly pay towards further developing our invention.”

The runner-up from North Staffordshire Combined Healthcare NHS Trust was nurse consultant Alister Campbell, and Simon Wilson, team leader of the Early Intervention Team, for psychosis awareness films, which are now freely available on the internet.

People suffering from psychosis wrote and acted the script and the films are aimed at improving general awareness of the condition among patients, the staff who care for them, their families and the general public.

Health visitor Julie Henderson, from Stoke on Trent Community Health Services, won her runner-up award for devising fridge magnets and a mobile to help parents to realise the importance of stimulating their children’s brains in the first three years of their life.

The project focuses upon increasing breastfeeding rates, language and vocabulary development, which is particularly important in areas where there is a high level of deprivation.

The other runner-up was Dean Grinham, IT programme delivery manager at University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust, for a software package that is now helping in the treatment of military personnel in Afghanistan.

Dean developed the Wound Infection Surveillance System (WISS) by working in collaboration with the Royal Centre for Defence Medicine .

It provides crucial medical information for clinicians working at Camp Bastion, the main British military base in Afghanistan, about the likely infections that could follow treatment in a particular geographical area.

MidTECH is part of a national network of NHS innovation hubs, established by the Department of Health to identify, protect and commercialise innovative ideas from the NHS.

This includes helping to patent or otherwise protect the ideas, linking up with industries that may help to commercialise them – and aiming to ensure that a share of the profits goes to the inventor and the NHS Trust where the projects were developed.

Further information about the winner, runners-up and other finalists is included in the ‘notes to editors’.

***ENDS***

Further information: Louise Jew, telephone 07854 126214, or Lou Thomas, 07710 133399.

Notes to Editors:

The full list of finalists for the competition

Julie Henderson, health visitor, Stoke-on-Trent Community Health Services, for a package to increase parents’ awareness and knowledge about the need to stimulate children’s minds during the first three years of life, when 90% of growth of the brain occurs.  The package includes fridge magnets and a mobile-making kit, using images of monkeys in parental situations with captions to remind mothers and fathers to stimulate their children in certain ways.

Natasha Wileman, research and development business manager, and Margaret Goodman, research facilitator, University Hospitals Coventry and Warwickshire NHS Trust, for ‘Teggy’, a mouth care device for patients unable to brush their own teeth.  Standard tooth brushes can be hard, inflexible and cause dryness in the mouth, especially in patients already very ill. The ‘Teggy’ device, used by nurses and healthcare assistants, includes a water reservoir in its base, which when squeezed sends a thin mist of water into the patient’s mouth via its soft bristles.
Alister Campbell, nurse consultant, and Simon Wilson, team leader of the Early Intervention Team, North Staffordshire Combined Healthcare NHS Trust, for ‘psychosis awareness films’, which are now available on the internet and for use by healthcare workers and for staff in roles such as teaching and social work. It was identified that a common problem experienced by people suffering with this mental health condition was that they had a low expectation of recovery.  The films use the experience of people suffering from psychosis, produced in a dramatic style, to improve understanding of the condition and ways of overcoming its effects.

Dr David Newbould, consultant anaesthetist and intensive care consultant, Sandwell and West Birmingham Hospitals NHS Trust, for the Accurate-Suck-Soft Indicator-Tip (the A.S.S.I.T), which is a newly designed device for oral and everyday surgical suctioning, used on patients either during surgery by surgeons or after they awaken by anaesthetists, or on wards, from the intensive care unit to casualty. Existing devices have been known to cause damage, including sore throats, infections and damaged teeth in patients.  However, the A.S.S.I.T, has a soft silicone rubber tip and anatomical ‘J-shaped’ design to allow better throat access. It also incorporates a ‘soft-bite’ block to protect the teeth, variable accurate control of suctioning and a ‘single use’ indicator to prevent  cross infection.

Mary Rutledge, ‘Deadly Trio’ programme manager, Heart of Birmingham Teaching Primary Care Trust (PCT), for developing visual aids to encourage patients to make informed choices about their diet. An analysis of patients of the PCT following the first year of the ‘Free NHS Health Check’ programme found one in four adults were obese. Mary has produced a box of visual aids to be used by health care professionals which include containers of fat, sugar and salt to highlight the often shocking amounts of each in a range of everyday food and drink products.

Dr Bill Thomson, consultant physicist and head of department, Sandwell and West Birmingham Hospitals NHS Trust, for an online calculator to help healthcare professionals using a form of radiotherapy to treat patients whose thyroid glands are producing too many hormones. Patients receiving such treatment need to follow a range of restrictions to limit the radiation they could pass on to others in the weeks following their therapy. Doses of radiotherapy and restriction advice needs to be tailored to each patient’s particular home or work circumstances, such as whether a member of their family is pregnant. Dr Thomson’s innovation makes it easier for healthcare staff to calculate the relevant dose limits and restrictions that patients should follow.

Maggie Denton, practice facilitator, and Emma Fish, modern matron, University Hospitals Coventry and Warwickshire NHS Trust, for a unique and distinctive ‘Please Respect Privacy’ sign.  Privacy and dignity is a high priority in the NHS to make sure that patients are not disturbed when receiving care in their hospital bed or in side rooms. The new warning sign can be used to tie the curtains around a bed together or be hung on door handles. It provides a clear signal to anyone approaching a treatment area that the privacy and dignity of the patient must be respected.

Diane Faulkner, specialist health visitor, Walsall Community Health Trust, for ‘Voices to be Heard’, booklets illustrating the journey that families undertake from first receiving a diagnosis of disability for their child and the life-changing effect this has on their world. The booklets aim to tell the story in the words of such families – not only of the heartache and personal struggles but also the achievements and rewards that each child brings to their family. The booklets are in two formats – one for the parents and children and the other for use as a training tool for professionals.

Cedd Burge, ‘Oasys’ IT manager, Heart of England NHS Foundation Trust, for the ‘Oasys’ internet database, which is a computer program to help to diagnose and assess patients with occupational asthma, which is caused through the work they do. Occupational asthma is the most common lung disease and can stop skilled people from working in the middle of their careers. Diagnosis is difficult and until now has required patients to spend a week in hospital to be assessed. However, the ‘Oasys’ programme analyses, with a high degree of accuracy, records of patients’ breathing capabilities and the system takes about 30 minutes to use.

Anne-Marie Fern, team manager, Birmingham and Solihull Mental Health NHS Foundation Trust, for the ‘Crack Pack’, which supports stimulant users to abstain from drug use or reduce the harm caused by their habit. It stores vital resources to promote their safety and contains information leaflets and remedies, as well as an innovative mobile SIM card to help them to break contact with their dealers and drug using associates. It also contains a set of playing cards with 52 tips to help them break their habit and to reduce the harm they could face as they tackle their addiction problem.

Dean Grinham, IT programme delivery manager, University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust, for new software to provide crucial medical information for clinicians working at Camp Bastion, the main British military base in Afghanistan. Dean has developed the ‘Wound Infection Surveillance System’ (WISS) in collaboration with the Royal Centre for Defence Medicine (RCDM). It enables the RCDM to predict with good accuracy the likely infections that could follow treatment in a particular geographical area.  This allows clinical decisions to be made on the ground, wherever treatment is delivered.

Shaz Hussain, senior manager (web and interactive media), Heart of England NHS Foundation Trust, for the ‘SBAR Interactive Training Scenario’. This is a short film, featuring Heart of England NHS Foundation Trust staff, telling the story of a clinical case, from admission to treatment. The scenario is paused at key points, which the user then has to negotiate correctly in order to continue. It scores performance, resulting in a final report – and a certificate if the trainee has performed satisfactorily – to help trainers to identify areas of weakness in both the user and the wider educative programme.

http://www.intouchwithhealth.net/Latest-News/patient-check-in-at-birminghams-new-flagship-hospital.html

http://www.midtech.org.uk/2010/07/hospital-and-defence-firm-team-up-with-invention-to-help-patients-with-chronic-lung-disease/

Sara’s paper-based assessment tools help nurses to assess patients for the most appropriate device to deliver medication directly into each patient’s veins.

The Venous Assessment Tool (VAT) and the Deciding on Intravenous Access (DIVA) were developed by Sara as part of her research for a Master’s thesis.

Sara approached MidTECH to discuss intellectual property protection of the VAT and DIVA tools. Sara also expressed her wish for the tools to be disseminated throughout healthcare and MidTECH advised that the best way to do this would be via a commercial partnership.

MidTECH approached 3M, knowing that they operated within this area and had developed and produced similar tools themselves previously.

MidTECH then facilitated a licence agreement between UHB and 3M, and now the VAT and DIVA assessment tools are distributed under licence by 3M.

http://www.midtech.org.uk/2009/09/nurse%e2%80%99s-invention-to-help-chemotherapy-patients/