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Digital NHS conference

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Digital NHS – Delivering 21st Century Healthcare
19th September 2013, The Barbican, London

At the Digital NHS – Delivering 21st Century Healthcare event, the impact on services of moving the NHS into a digital era will be explored. Case studies will share best practice initiatives, allowing delegates to assess how digital services may both enhance their professional roles and the patient experience

Confirmed speakers to date include;
Dr Charles Gutteridge, National Clinical Director for Informatics, Department of Health
Jon Lindberg, Associate Director, Intellect Healthcare Programme
John Cruickshank, Consultant Director, 2020 health
Rachel Neaman, Deputy Director for Digital, Department of Health
Dr Jeremy Wyatt, Leadership Chair in eHealth Research, University of Leeds

Further information is available at the conference website: http://www.regonline.co.uk/Register/Checkin.aspx?EventID=1214728&lbrd=1&rtypeid=285239.  Fees are £395 plus VAT.

ESRC: Pre-announcement of two pending calls for an Administrative Data Research Network (ADRN)

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Following the publication of the Administrative Data Taskforce report Improving Access for Research and Policy (PDF, 1.1Mb), the ESRC will be inviting proposals for a major investment in the new Administrative Data Research Network.

There will be two forthcoming calls:

  • for the Administrative Data Research Centres (ADRCs) in each of the four regions in the UK
  • and for the Information Gateway (IG) for ADRCs. Applications will be invited from research organisations eligible for Research Council Funding.

Applicants should be aware that the ESRC is currently in discussion with the statistical authorities in the UK to confirm their role in the new Network – with anticipation that they may become commissioning partners with the ESRC. Applicants should avoid approaching the statistical agencies about forming collaborations until full details of these calls are published.

Full details will become available 5 June 2013.

Potential applicants can register to attend a Bidders’ Information Event to be held in central London 13 June 2013. Those interested in attending should pre-register their details

Email: esrc@vistaevents.co.uk
Telephone: 020 8542 8223

Further information will be available on the ESRC website later in May

http://www.esrc.ac.uk/funding-and-guidance/funding-opportunities/26048/administrative-data-research-network.aspx

 

ESRC: Pre-announcement of a pending call for European-Chinese joint research projects

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Societal Challenges – Green Economy and Population Change

The research funding organisations of China (NSFC), France (ANR), Germany (DFG), The Netherlands (NWO) and the United Kingdom (ESRC) are delighted to launch a new multi-lateral collaboration consisting of a joint research programme on two basic societal challenges:

  • The challenges of the Green Economy
  • The challenges of Population Change

There will be a number of priority areas within these themes and researchers from these countries will be invited to submit proposals for joint projects in these areas. Researchers may have any disciplinary background within the social sciences and beyond, however, the proposal should be predominantly within the social sciences and applicants must satisfy the eligibility criteria of their home funding agency. Projects will also need to involve a number of Chinese and European partners; full guidance will be announced in the call.

The call, its decision procedure and funding mechanisms will be based on the Open Research Area for Social Sciences (ORA), a process established on international standards. Funding will be distributed among the partners according to the place of work of the researchers, and according to the funding rules of each individual agency.

Further information about the priority areas will be made available by the end of June 2013 with the full call launched in September. The closing date of the call will be in early December 2013.

http://www.esrc.ac.uk/funding-and-guidance/funding-opportunities/26041/societal-challenges.aspx

Establishment of a European Policy Network of National Literacy Organisations

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Deadline: 29th of August 2013; 12:00 PM

More than one in five 15-year-olds in Europe, as well as many more adults lack basic reading and writing skills. This makes it harder for them to pursue learning and to find a job, and puts them at risk of social exclusion. Aware of this serious problem, the European Commission has taken action to help improve literacy levels in Europe.

The purpose of this call for proposals is to support the establishment of one European policy network to raise awareness, gather and analyse policy information, exchange policy approaches, good practice and promising campaigns and initiatives to promote literacy in light of the Education and Training framework (ET2020) benchmark that the share of low-achieving 15-years olds in reading should be less than 15 % by 2020.

The objectives of this network are to:

  • develop country specific knowledge;
  • facilitate the exchange of good practice;
  • implement awareness-raising initiatives;
  • cooperate with other institutions and organisations working in the field of literacy both at national and EU level to promote effective literacy policies.

http://ec.europa.eu/education/calls/s0513_en.htm

Eight new Royal Society Industry Fellowships connect academia and industry

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The Royal Society has announced eight new fellowships aimed at strengthening links between academia and industry. The fellowships are awarded to academic scientists who want to work on a collaborative project with industry and for scientists in industry who want to work on a collaborative project with an academic organisation.

 The latest awardees’ project topics range from the pathology of neurodegenerative disease to mineral interface determination in shale hydration.

The scheme provides each scientist’s basic salary for the duration of their secondment, which lasts for up to two years full-time or four years part-time.

The full list of the latest Royal Society Industry Fellowships recipients is as follows:

Dr Hugh Greenwell from the University of Durham to work on Mineral Interface Determination During Shale Hydration with M-I SWACO.

Dr Atsufumi Hirohata from the University of York to work on the Development of an on-chip racetrack memory using exchange-biased pinning with Hitachi Cambridge laboratory.

Dr Hywel Jones from Sheffield Hallam University to work on Multi-Component Ceramic Composites for Engineering and Armour Applications with XeraCarb Ltd.

Dr Andreas Kranis from Aviagen to work on Capturing and Securing the Sequence Diversity of Broiler Chickens with the University of Edinburgh.

Professor Sankara Naryanan Ekkanath Madathil from the University of Sheffield to work on Systems Impact of Next Generation Power Semiconductors and Converter Technologies with Rolls-Royce.

Professor Yvan Petillot from Herriot-Watt University to work on Advanced autonomy in the subsea domain with SeeByte Ltd.

Professor Andrew Randall from the University of Exeter to work on In vivo, cell-level imaging of network dynamics and pathology in murine models of neurodegenerative disease with Lilly company UK.

Dr Michael Ries from the University of Leeds to work on Challenges in Green Solvent Cellulose Processing with Innovia Film Ltd.

This year is the Royal Society’s ‘Year of Science and Industry,’ which is supported by a number of events that showcase UK achievement in industrial science. Click here to find out more http://royalsociety.org/events/2013/year-science-industry/

People Powered Health could save the NHS £4.4bn a year

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Involving patients, their families and communities in the management of long term conditions could lead to better health outcomes and savings to the NHS, show Nesta findings.

The NHS in England could save at least £4.4bn1 a year if it adopts innovations that involve patients, their families and communities in the proven management of long term health conditions. The findings from the two year People Powered Health programme led by Nesta, the UK’s innovation foundation, involved teams from hospitals, GPs practices, community organisations and patients groups across England. 

The People Powered Health programme looked at innovations that have been developed over many years – from peer support networks to expert patient groups, doctors prescribing exercise to group consultations and timebanking. The programme asked what would happen if these became a standard part of long term condition management.

Working with front line health practitioners, community organisations, patients and their families, Nesta has generated recommendations grounded in practical experience and backed up by a robust analysis of research in the UK and internationally. 

A third of the UK population currently lives with a long term condition, like diabetes, heart disease or mental health problems, accounting for half of GP appointments and two thirds of outpatient appointments2.  Long term conditions are one of the biggest challenges facing global health systems, which were originally designed to deliver care for acute and infectious disease, not manage chronic conditions that can’t be cured by drugs or surgery.

The People Powered Health approach: 

  • Mobilises people and recognises personal strengths as well as family, friends, communities and peer networks that can work alongside health professionals.
  • Redefines the relationship between patients and health care professionals focusing on the needs and aspirations of patients, but expects more from the relationships.
  • Blurs the artificial boundaries between health, public health and social care, and between formal and informal support for patients.

In the People Powered Health: health for people, by people, with people report published today, Nesta and the Innovation Unit argue for widespread changes to the way that patients are involved in shaping their own care and the services that are commissioned to support them.  At a time of change for health services in England, the report argues that there is an unparalleled opportunity to implement this approach to managing long term health conditions at scale. 

In a second report also published today, The business case for People Powered Health, Nesta describes the specific investments required to create services with a People Powered Health approach based on a literature review of studies.

Halima Khan, director of Nesta’s Public Services Lab, explains, “The People Powered Health approach holds the key to the long term financial sustainability of the health system – the potential cost savings are very significant and could have a major impact on the quality of life for people with long term conditions.  This approach challenges the traditional roles of patients and professionals so that people are supported to take more control of their own health.  Ultimately, people do more with and for each other and with health services to stop being about institutions and focus on individuals and communities.” 

Paul Corrigan, senior associate at the Innovation Unit, comments, “People Powered Health is about creating new sources of value for the NHS. Patients are valuable assets and, with the right support, they can become develop more control over their health – this is good for them and good for the NHS”.

Over the next few weeks, Nesta will be publishing a series of guides for practitioners on how to implement the People Powered Health approach, including how GPs can use social prescribing to get patients engaged in exercise and reduce isolation, the role of peer support to help people living with long term health conditions and how commissioning of health services needs to change to ensure a wider range of services than drugs and medical procedures. These will be available at www.nesta.org.uk/people_powered_health

Reports on the State of the Innovation Union and UK Innovation Performance

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The European Commission has published a report entitled “State of the Innovation Union 2012”. This provides a summary of progress made at national and EU level towards achieving the goals of the Innovation Union flagship initiative, which is the EU policy framework governing research and innovation until 2020.

The Commission has also published series of separate shorter reports on individual EU countries’ research and innovation and performance, including the UK.

State of the Innovation Union report

The report was published alongside the 2013 Innovation Union scoreboard, on which UKRO reported last week (see the article indicated below). The report’s findings are grouped into the five key parts of the Innovation Union initiative, which are:

  • strengthening the knowledge base and reducing fragmentation;
  • getting good ideas to market;
  • European Innovation Partnerships (EIPs);
  • maximising social and territorial cohesion; and
  • leveraging policies externally.

The first section includes analysis of the progress made during 2012 on delivering the European Research Area (ERA), and on focusing EU research funding on Innovation Union priorities. On the former issue, the report states that the conditions are not yet in place for achieving the ERA by 2014 (one of the key goals of the Innovation Union). However the Commission’s Communication on the ERA Framework issued in July 2012, and the work required of EU Member States and the Commission to put in place its recommendations, should enable significant progress to be made during 2013.

On focusing EU funding programmes on Innovation Union, the report states that: “In line with the ambition set out in the Innovation Union, Horizon 2020 marks an important break from the past, with funding having a more challenged-based approach, simpler rules for participants, and more effective delivery of results”. This section of the report also analyses the European Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT) with respect to the Innovation Union priorities.

Report on UK research and innovation performance
The report on UK performance in research and innovation, which analyses the progress made towards achieving the Innovation Union goals, includes sections on:

  • the UK’s scientific and technological strengths;
  • investments in knowledge;
  • policies and reforms on research and innovation;
  • economic impact of innovation;
  • upgrading the manufacturing sector through research and technologies; and
  • global competitiveness.

The summary includes the following analysis:

  • “The UK shows overall innovation performance above the EU average. There are particular strengths in human resources, venture capital, international and public-private co-publications, and entrepreneurship…. The presence of several world-class universities, a significant proportion of young doctoral graduates, and competitive strengths in sectors such as pharmaceuticals and digital technologies have helped achieve this strong performance. However, there are relative weaknesses in research and innovation investments by firms, the creation of intellectual assets, and SMEs introducing innovations. The UK economy has several distinctive characteristics that represent actual or potential sources of competitive advantage in the innovation sphere, including a world-leading science base and information infrastructure”.

The full report on the UK is here.

http://ec.europa.eu/research/innovation-union/pdf/state-of-the-union/2012/countries/united_kingdom_2013.pdf#view=fit&pagemode=none

Science essential to boosting efficiency, says Commissioner

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Europe needs science to drive innovation in energy efficiency and develop better products, research commissioner Máire Geoghegan-Quinn has told a conference of scientists and policymakers.

Science is the basic requirement for developing more efficient buildings, vehicles, and appliances, she said. “Greater efficiency in these three key sectors will come from the development of new materials, technological advances, and innovative approaches,” the commissioner told the conference.

Better technologies in this area would also help Europe become more resilient in the face of climate change, and ensure an advantage for European companies on international markets, the commissioner added.

Geoghegan-Quinn was speaking yesterday (26 March) in Brussels at a conference organised by the European Commission’s Joint Research Centre. The conference, Scientific Support to EU Growth and Jobs: Efficient buildings, vehicles and equipment, addressed how increasing energy efficiency would enhance Europe’s competitiveness.

The conference was the first event in a Commission initiative about how science can contribute to growth and jobs in the EU. Around 400 researchers, industry representatives and policymakers were in attendance.

Geoghegan-Quinn stressed the need for industrial groups and public researchers to work together to make sure both basic and applied approaches are used to improve energy efficiency.

“Basic research is not part of the public-private partnerships’ philosophy of emphasising activities that are closer to the market,” Geoghegan-Quinn said. “But there is a real need to coordinate upstream and downstream activities by covering the whole value chain from basic research to innovation, and that’s one of the key aims of Horizon 2020.”

Horizon 2020 is the next EU research programme, which is scheduled to begin in 2014.

See European commission statement:

http://ec.europa.eu/dgs/jrc/index.cfm?id=1410&obj_id=16500&dt_code=NWS&lang=en&ori=HLN

Call for Proposals: Erasmus Charter for Higher Education 2014-20

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The European Commission has launched a call for proposals for the Erasmus Charter for Higher Education 2014-2020 under the proposed programme for education, training, youth and sport.
 

The Erasmus Charter for Higher Education (ECHE) provides the general quality framework for European and international co-operation activities a Higher Education Institution may carry out within the Programme. It is a prerequisite for HEIs to organise student mobility and teaching and other staff mobility, to carry out Erasmus intensive language courses and intensive programmes, and to apply for multilateral projects, networks, accompanying measures and to organise preparatory visits. Renewal of Staffordshire University’s Erasmus Charter for HE will be applied for at an institutional level.

The 2014-2020 EU programme for education, training, youth and sport supports, among other policy objectives, the European modernisation and internationalisation agenda in higher education. The Programme will cover the period 2014-2020 and replaces seven existing programmes, including the Lifelong Learning programme (LLP) which will end with the academic year 2013-2014.

For further information contact externalprojects@staffs.ac.uk