Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust (LTHT) welcomed partners from across the HealthTech ecosystem to Nexus, University of Leeds for the HealthTech Innovation in Partnership event, delivered in collaboration with the Association of British HealthTech Industries (ABHI). The event brought together more than 110 representatives from industry, universities, local government and regional innovation organisations to explore how collaboration can accelerate innovation and improve patient care.
Opening the event, Professor David Brettle, Chief Scientific Officer, Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust, highlighted the importance of strong partnerships between the NHS, academia and industry in transforming healthcare and ensuring innovation reaches patients faster.
Professor Brettle also highlighted the scale of research activity at the Trust, which includes more than 117,000 research participants recruited in the last 5 years, and the growing role of technology in helping the NHS respond to increasing demand while improving patient outcomes.
Richard Phillips, Executive Director of Policy and Partnerships at ABHI, reinforced the strength of Leeds’ HealthTech ecosystem and the value of long-standing partnerships in the region.
“Leeds has a strong HealthTech ecosystem built on deep relationships between organisations such as LTHT, the University of Leeds and industry partners. By continuing to forge connections with system leaders we can accelerate innovation and deliver real benefits for patients.”
Throughout the day, speakers explored how collaboration across organisations can help tackle some of the biggest challenges facing healthcare. Discussions on the future of neighbourhood health highlighted how demographic changes, workforce pressures and widening health inequalities are shaping new models of care. Speakers described how the “centre of gravity” of healthcare is shifting, with more diagnostics, monitoring and preventative care taking place closer to home, supported by improved data, shared intelligence and interoperable systems.
The event also showcased the infrastructure that supports innovation across Leeds. Plans for the redevelopment of the Old Medical School at Leeds General Infirmary, were presented as a future hub for innovation, bringing together researchers, clinicians, businesses and investors in a collaborative environment designed to support new ideas from concept through to real-world application.
Panel discussions explored how the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) is supporting collaboration between the NHS and industry to transform research into reality. Speakers from the NIHR Leeds Biomedical Research Centre, NIHR Leeds Clinical Research Facility and the HealthTech Research Centre in Accelerated Surgical Care highlighted how Leeds offers a full spectrum of research infrastructure, from early laboratory research through to clinical trials and real-world evaluation.
Patient and public involvement was also emphasised as a vital part of successful innovation, ensuring that new technologies are developed with, and for, the people who will ultimately benefit from them.
Later sessions focused on regional partnerships supporting health technology innovation, with organisations including Leeds Academic Health Partnership, the West Yorkshire Combined Authority, universities and innovation hubs outlining how the region is helping health technology companies to start, grow and scale.
The event highlighted the thriving research base, strong university partnerships and growing innovation ecosystem in the region, including Nexus at the University of Leeds, Leeds Beckett University and Leeds Teaching Hospitals collaboration through the Health Innovation Leeds Incubator.
The event concluded with case studies demonstrating how partnerships between Leeds Teaching Hospitals and industry are already delivering impact, including collaborations focused on digital pathology, data-driven research partnerships and the deployment of artificial intelligence technologies in clinical practice.
Led by the Trust’s Innovation Pop Up, this was a crucial event to demonstrate how Leeds Teaching Hospitals, along with partners from across the Leeds City Research and Innovation Ecosystem are truly collaborating to deliver the next generations of healthcare innovation and translating the 10‑Year Plan into delivery.