Published on
The Health Innovation Hub goes national....
Applications are being sought from organisations to be the host institution for the proposed National Health Innovation Hub. The establishment of a National health Innovation Hub was listed as one of the seven disruptive reforms in the 2013 Action Plan for Jobs that could help sustain and create employment.
The aim of the National Health Innovation Hub (NHIH) initiative is to drive collaboration between the health system and enterprise. It aims to:
- Facilitate enterprise develop and commercialise new healthcare technologies, products and services by giving them appropriate access to the health service to validate and refine products
- Facilitate the health system to find efficiencies and improvements by engaging with innovative companies creating solutions to problems (reducing cost, increasing service efficiency, improving patient outcomes, etc.)
- Support innovative developments emerging from within the health system
Pilot Programme
The initiative was piloted in Cork and 22 companies have been involved to date. An evaluation of the pilot concluded that the Health Innovation Hub has the potential to become a vital component of the national innovation infrastructure. In July 2014, Government agreed to establish the National Health Innovation Hub to proactively develop, manage, and progress relationships and connections with industry and the health system.
Submitting a proposal
Enterprise Ireland are leading this call for proposals, which invites applicants to submit a proposal and a case to be the host institution for the proposed Hub by 15 April 2015.
Find out more about the application process here.
You can also find out about one company - Lincor - who successfully used the Hub pilot project to collaborate with healthcare experts.
Did you know....
Healthcare is one of the largest, fastest growing, and most complex industries in the world. Nine of the top 10 pharmaceutical companies in the world have a base in Ireland, as do eight of the top 10 medtech companies and eight of the top 10 software providers.