Innovative companies will be able to trial new health products in clinical settings, following a link-up between the Scottish Government’s £42m Techscaler programme and the NHS.
Participants in the programme, which provides expertise and support to young businesses with high growth potential, are being offered access to NHS Regional Test Beds.
These should enable entrepreneurs to work alongside clinicians and have access to patients and anonymised data to test new products and services.
And in a reciprocal agreement, firms already using the NHS Test Beds will automatically become part of the Techscaler network.
Wellbeing Economy Secretary Neil Gray announced the move during a visit to Bioliberty in Edinburgh, which uses robotics to provide rehabilitation and assistance for stroke survivors.
The company will be one of 14 firms in sectors including healthtech and life sciences to join a Scottish Government-funded visit to New York to showcase their work.
Gray said: “Scotland’s life sciences sector has an annual turnover of more than £8bn and is one of our key sectors for transformative economic growth.
“This partnership will be able to leverage our world-leading universities, life sciences hubs and excellent healthcare systems to support the growth of the sector and development of entrepreneurs.
“Testing products in a real world environment and accelerating development is vital, and will enable a broader reach of the Tech Scaler programme,“ he continued, adding: “This in turn will benefit patients and medical staff as they develop cutting-edge technology for use across the NHS, from stroke and rehabilitation through to reducing drug-related deaths.”
Scotland’s chief entrepreneur Mark Logan said: “By making this connection between health testing and business support, we create an environment for innovation which enables Scottish companies to compete effectively, whilst bringing much-needed treatment solutions to the NHS.”
Stephen Coleman, chief executive of Codebase, which operates the Techscaler programme, added: “This new collaboration with NHS Test Beds will enhance the network effects within Scotland’s innovation ecosystem, creating a platform that enables startups to tackle challenges in life science more effectively.”
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