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Cork cousins develop compostable PPE apron to reduce plastic usage in Irish healthcare

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Cork cousins develop compostable PPE apron to reduce plastic usage in Irish healthcare

Updated / Saturday, 17 Jun 2023 07:13
By Eleanor Mannion
Two Cork cousins have developed a compostable PPE apron to reduce plastic usage in the healthcare industry.

Dr Mary O’Riordan and Lisa O’Riordan developed their ‘guilt-free’ HaPPE Earth apron in response to an increase in plastic pollution during the Covid-19 pandemic.

“We had all become aware of the crisis around plastics production and pollution. A truckload of plastic goes into the sea every minute of every day. So it’s a major problem and we feel all sectors need to come together to solve it,” Ms O’Riordan explained.

Billions of single-use plastic PPE aprons are used globally each year.

Made from low-density polyethylene (LDPE), they can take up to 50 years to disintegrate.

The new compostable apron is made from proprietary resin and disintegrates in just five weeks.

An LDPE apron beside the compostable HaPPE apron

“The single-use plastic apron is something that’s used all the time and thrown away,” explained Dr O’Riordan. “We were speaking to one surgeon who went through 27 in one session.

“If every one of those is ten grams and each of those, if you count them up – in Ireland, there’s 50 million of them used every year then that’s 500 tonnes of waste in Ireland per year alone.

“So then, you extrapolate that out globally and you’re talking about hundreds of thousands of tonnes year-on-year of single-use plastic apron. And we thought, ‘Look, this has to stop’.”

The HaPPE Earth apron is CE approved for use in healthcare.

The apron was one of 11 winners of the Health Innovation Hub Ireland (HIHI) Open Call 2022.

HIHI conducted pilots in hospitals and nursing home setting to assess the usability, durability and acceptability of the HaPPE apron within healthcare settings.

Dr Ruth Lernihan, Chief Executive Helen Donovan, and Niamh Allen of SIVUH

Healthcare workers and catering staff at South Infirmary Victoria University Hospital (SIVUH) in Cork were involve in the pilot scheme.

“In 2022, we used 700,000 aprons,” Dr Ruth Lernihan, Director of Nursing at the hospital said. “If you just think of that and the waste stream from non-clinical waste and the environmental impact of that and where that all ends up so we were delighted to get this opportunity.”

Becoming more sustainable is a priority for the hospital.

“Certainly, when you look at PPE, there is a lot of waste,” Helen Donovan, Chief Executive of SIVUH said. “As an elective hospital, we are in an unique position to look at our processes and how we do things.

“The multi-disciplinary team here who were involved in the trial, nurses, catering staff, cleaning staff, each one of those individuals has an unique perspective and contributed to patient care.”

During the pilot staff were asked to provide feedback on the compostable aprons.

“When staff were using them in the pilot, there was fierce results,” Niamh Allen, a Clinical Nurse Manager said. “They found them comfortable, less heavy, less static, more breathable which allowed them to feel more flexible in their daily order of work.”

With positive feedback from healthcare workers in the pilot schemes, Mary and Lisa O’Riordan now hope their compostable PPE apron will ultimately replace the 50 million singe-use plastic aprons used every year in Irish healthcare.

“Every time we see another one of our HaPPE aprons on someone in a healthcare setting, we know that we’ve reduced the use of another plastic one,” Dr O’Riordan said. “For us, that’s less 50 years in landfill.”

“It would be amazing to think that Ireland will be on of the first to pioneer bringing compostable consumables into healthcare,” Lisa O’Riordan said.

Watch the RTE video here

https://www.rte.ie/video/id/6574/

Health Innovation Hub Ireland launches an Insurance Factsheet in association with O’Leary Insurances which will help SME’s to minimise risk and protect their businesses

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Today, Health Innovation Hub Ireland launched a new Insurance Factsheet in association with O’Leary Insurances Ltd. Insurance is important for every company. This factsheet covers the types of insurance SME’s should consider in order to minimise risk. This factsheet will give companies an understanding of how they can utilise Insurance as a risk management tool to protect your business.

The following options are explored: Clinical trial insurance; Public and products liability insurance; Employers Liability; Property damage; Business interruption; Professional indemnity/ technology errors and omissions; Cyber Liability and Manager Liability insurance. Read the factsheet here. bit.ly/3MI1bBG

This innovation tool factsheet has been launched as part of a HIHI resource, an on-line Knowledge Network to support Irish healthcare innovators. The HIHI Knowledge Network, provides a portfolio of HIHI developed material, digital programmes, resources, workshops and a formal education programme developed to support Irish healthcare innovators. It supports innovators by providing a tool-kit to assist them through the innovation pathway. HIHI Innovation Tools  assist SME’s on their journey taking an idea or innovation through to a product used in healthcare systems which is challenging, and many innovators need support. HIHI Innovation Tools provide all of this in one repository through easily understood, downloadable factsheets covering advice on areas such as regulations, IP, reimbursement, design standards, medical device classification, (IP), GDPR, research ethics and now the most recent innovation tool, Insurance.

 

HIHI Director Dr Tanya Mulcahy to speak on Innovation in Women’s Health and the Femtech ecosystem at this year’s Future Health Summit

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Dr Tanya Mulcahy, Director of Health Innovation Hub Ireland (HIHI) and founder of Ireland’s first FemTech Ecosystem will speak at this year’s Future Health Summit as part of the innovation discussion. Tanya has over 30 years’ experience in the start-up, pharma, product development and research industry in Ireland and the US. She has a PhD in Cancer Genetics, has conducted postdoctoral research in neuropsychiatric genetics, has a BSc in Biochemistry and a Postgraduate Diploma in Clinical Trials. She has been appointed by the Minister for Health to the HPRA Medical Device Advisory Committee. She is an Advisory Committee member of the National Clinical Trials Office (NCTO). She is an independent advisor to a number of HealthTech start-ups. Tanya is an advocate for female founders and is particularly interested in supporting FemTech founders.

The summit will feature the importance of innovation. Healthcare innovation comes in many forms, from breakthrough drugs and devices that can change outcomes on a global level, to small changes in specific settings that improve productivity, efficiency and patient experience. The session will focus on  innovations that are driving change for the better.

The line up for the session on Thursday 25th May is as follows:
Session Chair | Conference Chair

14:40 – 14:55

Prof Colin Doherty, consultant neurologist and director of the epilepsy service at St James’s Hospital. Head of School of Medicine, TCD and Clinical lead SFI FutureNeuro Centre.

14:55 – 15:10

Anne O’Connor, Managing Director, VHI Health and Wellbeing

15:10 – 15:25

Dr Tanya Mulcahy, Director, Health Innovation Hub Ireland (HIHI)

Innovation in Women’s Health- Ireland’s FemTech Ecosystem. 

15:25 – 15:40

Brent Burns, Executive Vice President, UPMC Enterprises

15:40 – 16:00 | Panel discussion chaired by conference chair

She has over 30 years’ experience in the start-up, pharma, product development and research industry in Ireland and the US. She has a PhD in Cancer Genetics, has conducted postdoctoral research in neuropsychiatric genetics, has a BSc in Biochemistry and a Postgraduate Diploma in Clinical Trials.
She has been appointed by the Minister for Health to the HPRA Medical Device Advisory Committee. She is an Advisory Committee member of the National Clinical Trials Office (NCTO). She is an independent advisor to a number of HealthTech start-ups. Tanya is an advocate for female founders and is particularly interested in supporting FemTech founders.

For more details visit https://www.futurehealthsummit.com/

New AI digital platform developed by an oncologist at University Hospital Galway is set to be a gamechanger in the delivery of clinical trial education and patient care

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Pictured Mr Michael McCarthy, a consultant medical oncologist at University Hospital Galway

8th May, 2023 Galway, Ireland – Mr Michael McCarthy, a consultant medical oncologist at University Hospital Galway, has developed a digital platform aimed at helping healthcare professionals keep pace with practice-changing studies, a key part of continuous medical education (CME) and professional development. Mr McCarthy approached Health Innovation Hub Ireland (HIHI) to help develop the platform, which uses AI to capture and analyse randomized controlled clinical trial reports.

The University of Galway has been awarded a Commercialisation Fund Feasibility Study grant from Enterprise Ireland to determine the commercial viability of Mr. McCarthy’s OncDB platform. The online platform is specifically designed to help clinicians, nurses, students, pharmacists, and other healthcare professionals to integrate up-to-date clinical trial data into their clinical practice, teaching, and training. It will reduce the burden of documenting CME activities, which is a statutory requirement for physicians to retain their Medical Council registration in Ireland and most developed countries worldwide.

The development of the OncDB platform has been made possible through the collaboration of a team of experts, including Conor McNally, ADAPT; Dr John McCrae, University of Galway; Thomas Melia, Enterprise Ireland (EI); HIHI, and the Technology Transfer Office (TTO) in University of Galway. Dr McCrae’s expertise in machine learning (ML) and Natural Language Processing (NLP) will be critical to the development of the platform, while Mr. McCarthy’s understanding and experience in the area of clinical medicine has ensured that the platform meets the needs of healthcare professionals in the field.

Unlike competing solutions, the OncDB platform is specifically designed to address the difficulty of keeping pace with an accelerating rate of practice-changing publications experienced by healthcare professionals in public and commercial sectors. The platform is expected to provide significant efficiencies and time-saving for healthcare professionals, delivering value to both individual prescribers and institutions.

It is unique in offering AI-supported critical appraisal, rapid repackaging, and re-use of key learnings. It is also portable, providing access from the bedside to the clinic, the classroom, and the conference hall. The platform will provide authors with detailed user-engagement metrics for their published works, enabling wide-scale AI-supported peer-review of published clinical trials, and provide users with AI-driven tailored content suggestions to provide a 360° up-to-the-minute view of any declared field of user-interest.

Mr Michael McCarthy, consultant medical oncologist at University Hospital Galway and the developer of the platform outlined the benefits for patients and clinicians. “We believe this problem is worth solving because keeping up with the latest clinical trial data is crucial for healthcare professionals to provide the best possible care for their patients,” said Mr McCarthy. “By providing a digital platform that captures and analyzes randomized controlled clinical trial reports in real time, we can help clinicians, nurses, students, pharmacists and other healthcare professionals stay up-to-date with the latest treatments and therapies, ultimately improving patient outcomes. We want to test our assumptions regarding the appetite for such a platform in the broader medical and allied healthcare fields, as well as the likelihood of institutional adoption of our platform by public healthcare training bodies and in commercial sectors, and the financial value attachable to the efficiencies and time-saving that would be delivered by the platform.”

Dr Steven Griffin, Clinical Innovation Manager, Health Innovation Hub Ireland welcomed this new AI solution “We are excited to be supporting Mr. McCarthy and the team at the University of Galway in the development of this innovative digital platform. The potential benefits for healthcare professionals, patients and the broader medical community are clear. By enabling clinicians, nurses, students, pharmacists and other healthcare professionals to stay up-to-date with the latest clinical trial findings, this platform has the potential to improve patient outcomes, reduce healthcare costs and enhance professional development. We look forward to seeing the results of the feasibility study and the impact that this technology could have on healthcare in Ireland and beyond,” said a spokesperson for the Health Innovation Hub Ireland.

Dr John McCrae, Research Lecturer, University of Galway “As a researcher in natural language processing, I am excited to contribute to the development of this platform that aims to bridge the gap between clinical trial reports and healthcare practice. By leveraging AI and NLP, we can create a system that can efficiently”.

About HIHI

Health Innovation Hub Ireland (HIHI) drives collaboration between the health service and enterprise. We offer companies the opportunity to pilot and/or participate in clinical evaluation studies to prove their products. We provide the health service access to innovative products, services and devices that they may not otherwise be exposed to. HIHI is built on the recognition that collaboration with enterprise can benefit patient care, patient pathways and outcomes. We assess all concepts for healthcare innovation from those on the frontline. We encourage healthcare professionals to get in touch with HIHI if they have an idea or solution to how something in your job might work better. HIHI was established by the Department of Business, Enterprise and Innovation and the Department of Health and is supported by Enterprise Ireland (EI) and the Health Service Executive (HSE).

About ADAPT – SFI Centre for Research in AI Driven Digital Content Technology

ADAPT, the world-leading SFI Research Centre for AI-Driven Digital Content Technology, brings leading academics, researchers and industry partners together to deliver excellent science, engage the public, develop novel solutions for business across all sectors and enhance Ireland’s international reputation. Coordinated by Trinity College Dublin and co-hosted by Dublin City University, ADAPT’s partner institutions include University College Dublin, Technological University Dublin, Maynooth University, Munster Technological University, Technological University of the Shannon: Midlands Midwest, and the University of Galway.

About University of Galway Technology Transfer Office (TTO)

The Technology Transfer Office (TTO) accelerates the impact of the University of Galway’s research and innovation by engaging with researchers, enterprises, government and society. The TTO enables engagement, collaboration, knowledge transfer, research commercialisation, and supports the region’s start-up and innovation ecosystem.

The TTO is the primary entrepreneurial support and intellectual property commercialisation function within University of Galway. The committed team has a strong sense of purpose and its remit is linked to strong metrics for the university. The team have a strong track record of leveraging funding, filing patents for novel technologies, collaborating with industry, and creating new companies and start-ups.

About Enterprise Ireland

Enterprise Ireland is the Irish government agency responsible for the development and growth of Irish enterprises in world markets. They provide supports for early-stage innovations by funding, mentoring, and advising companies through their various programs. They offer a wide range of financial supports such as seed capital, venture capital, and equity funding for startups, as well as funding for product development and commercialization. Enterprise Ireland also provides access to a network of industry experts, mentors, and partners to help companies develop their products and enter international markets. They also provide resources and training to help entrepreneurs develop the necessary skills and knowledge to grow their businesses. Their goal is to help Irish companies to start, scale and succeed in global markets.

 

 

Health Innovation Hub Ireland invites you to a HIHI Speaker Event featuring Jos Knaapen “the Innovation figure” of Isala hospital in the Netherlands

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Spaces are limited so book now  https://www.eventbrite.ie/e/speaker-event-jos-knaapen-tickets-631468207407

About the Speaker

Jos Knaapen is the ‘Innovation Figure’ of Isala, one of the largest hospitals in the Netherlands. His main focus is making measurable improvements to patient care while making work more enjoyable for everyone. The results are numerous: the first medical drone in the Netherlands took off into the air in a meadow near Isala’s hospital in Meppel, Isala won the Dutch TopClinical Innovation Award with a VR-education tool focussed on recognizing and discussing violence ‘behind closed doors’ and using VR glasses as a tool to distract and manage pain in children during procedures.

In 2019 Jos took on the role of ‘coordinator innovation’ for the Dutch cooperative alliance ‘mProve’, in which seven clinical hospitals are united in their efforts to make Dutch healthcare future proof. In May 2023 he started the mProve FUNxLab, in which ‘functional’ technology (with an emphasis on ‘FUN’) for scarce healthcare personnel is the main focus. The FUNxLab’s ‘modus operandi’ is exchanging knowledge and inspiration, scaling up those interventions with measurable positive effect on productivity and job satisfaction, and ensuring dialogue with industry, education and health care insurers on new technology to support the hospitals for the future.

 https://www.eventbrite.ie/e/speaker-event-jos-knaapen-tickets-631468207407

 

 

 

 

 

 

HIHI’s completes a climate smart healthcare case study with Irish company HaPPE Earth on the HaPPE apron a fully compostable PPE solution

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COVID-19 is still dominant across the world and climate change is to the forefront of the global conversation. Climate smart healthcare solutions are necessary to meet the problem of increased waste. According to WHO, during the COVID-19 pandemic, plastic production more than doubled, raising concerns about both the short-term impacts on fresh water, oceans and air quality, and the longer-term impacts of persistent nano-plastic particles.

The WHO Global analysis of health care waste in the context of COVID-19 report (Feb 2022) outlined the problems we face globally and what recommendations are necessary to combat them. https://www.who.int/publications/i/item/9789240039612

There is increasing global pressure at an economic, environmental and regulatory level to reduce single use plastics. At present, only 10% of healthcare plastic is recycled. During 2020, Ireland used 70 million and England 900 million PPE aprons.

Billions of PPE aprons are used globally each year. The global market is still 98% Low-density polyethylene (LDPE) usage with very little in the way of credible alternatives. This usage is set to continue year on year causing significant environmental and long term health harms.

As this dialogue continues internationally, 2 Irish female entrepreneurs Dr Mary O’ Riordan and Lisa O’Riordan have developed a novel innovative PPE product, the HaPPE Apron. This compostable PPE apron is suitable for use in healthcare and is CE approved and most importantly, in a world where the effects of climate change are growing, it’s environmentally friendly.

HaPPE Earth came up with a healthcare solution. The HaPPE Apron protects healthcare staff and adheres to water repellence, density and tensile strength of current LDPE single use apron. However, in contrast to the LDPE apron currently being used in healthcare, the HaPPE Apron is entirely compostable. The standard LDPE apron, used across healthcare takes about 50 years to degrade whereas the HaPPE apron composts in just 5 weeks with zero toxic residue. It is made from HaPPE Proprietary Resin composed of an innovative family of compostable materials. Initial calculations on the compostable HaPPE apron sees a reduction of 75% in CO2e (CO2  emissions) when compared to the standard LDPE single use apron.

HIHI conducted pilots in hospitals and nursing home settings in the South Infirmary Victoria University Hospital (SIVUH) in Cork and Tallaght University Hospital (TUH) in Dublin and Brindley Manor Nursing Home in Donegal, part of the Orpea group. HIHI supported this project by assisting the project team to engage
with stakeholders, collecting and analysing feedback and usage data and providing project management expertise during the project.

Dr Mary O’Riordan, Co-founder, HaPPE  explained the value of the HIHI pilots. “It was such a fantastic experience for HaPPE Earth to be part of the Health Innovation Hub Ireland (HIHI). To see our compostable apron being used by frontline staff in the Irish Health Service and to get such support from the HIHI team was invaluable to us. It is through collaboration like this that we bring practical solutions to our health system. The HIHI programme is extremely well organized and supportive. We were delighted to be part of it and would encourage other innovative companies to participate. We give it a big HaPPE highly recommended.”

 Dr Tanya Mulcahy, Director, Health Innovation Hub Ireland applauded this green solution : “Worldwide, the healthcare sector is responsible for as much as 4.6 percent of total greenhouse gas emissions. If Ireland is to make an impact, we need to look at innovative products that reduce carbon emissions while maintaining safety. The HaPPE apron is safe, equivalent to current PPE and is addressing sustainability- it’s also Irish! I am delighted that HIHI and SIVUH have demonstrated that this is a viable option for Irish and global healthcare, we are working on a second pilot in Tallaght University Hospital-wouldn’t it be great to see this product in use across our entire healthcare system”

Image Left to right pictured at SIVUH (Lisa O’Riordan, Co-founder HaPPE Earth, Johnny Brackett HCA, Niamh Allen, HIHI Clinical Liaison and HSE Clinical Nurse Manager, Dr Mary O’Riordan, Co-founder HaPPE Earth, Lily Matthews, Clinical Nurse Manager 1)

Read the full case study here https://hih.ie/downloads/case-studies/HIHI-case-study_HaPPE.pdf

 

Teleatherapy gets HSE approval after trials of its tech for Parkinson’s patients

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Blathnaid O’ Dea at the Silicon Republic recently highlighted Teleatherapy’s new tech for Parkinson’s patients.

Dr Tanya Mulcahy, Director Health Innovation Hub Ireland welcomed the news. “This is a great Irish product with the potential to impact Parkinson’s patients globally,” said Dr Tanya Mulcahy, director of the Health Innovation Hub Ireland.

HIHI recently worked with Teleatherapy to pilot their product with the HSE in Tullamore.

Teleatherapy recently raised €700,000 in pre-seed funding from Enterprise Ireland and private investors to grow its business.

Cork-based medtech start-up Teleatherapy has reached a significant milestone with its software performing well in clinical trials conducted by the HSE in Laois and Offaly.

Teleatherapy makes tech that helps provide speech therapy for people with Parkinson’s disease. In February of this year, the company raised €700,000 in pre-seed funding from private investors and Enterprise Ireland to expand its business.

The company has been working with the HSE and Health Innovation Hub Ireland to pilot its tech in a clinical setting in January. The HSE’s speech and language therapists trialled Teleatherapy’s platform on patients.

Teleatherapy’s founder Clare Meskill is herself a speech and language therapist. She founded the company to devise a tech-based product to make delivering care to Parkinson’s patients easier and more expedient.

Speech and language therapists can use Teleatherapy’s app to prescribe exercises to patients and monitor their progress.

Meskill, who founded the start-up in 2020, said that it was great the company could collaborate with the HSE “to build and improve the platform as we learn together”.

Of the speech and language therapists Teleatherapy worked with on the trials, she said that “their enthusiasm and dedication has been fantastic”.

Aoife Carolan, speech and language therapy lead on the pilot, said she had noticed improvements for patients and professionals alike.

Carolan has worked with Teleatherapy since 2022 to trial its tech in her department.

“I have noticed that clients are more motivated to practice consistently as they know their HSE clinician is monitoring the quantity, quality and frequency of their practice at home – with obvious results evident in terms of their speech function and less need for face-to-face routine reviews.”

She noted that the tech also helped with therapists’ caseload management. “There is good potential for waiting list reduction with an initiative of this nature. It also means there is more time during face-to-face sessions to focus on more complex or bespoke issues, outside of the daily therapy which we now know is being completed well and consistently with the aid of this app and the feedback it gives us.”

Following the successful pilot, Teleatherapy is now looking to work with other HSE clinics.

Read the full article here Teleatherapy gets HSE approval after trials of its tech for Parkinson’s patients (siliconrepublic.com)

 

HIHI has completed another product pilot case study the HospitalBuddy app, now used in 11 Irish hospitals by 2,000 doctors

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HIHI has completed another successful case study to add to the widening portfolio of work. Dr. Tanya Mulcahy, Director of Health Innovation Hub Ireland welcomed it’s completion. “HIHI were delighted to work on another product pilot case study, the HospitalBuddy app. Our Doctors and healthcare teams are always busy.  Hospital Buddy was created by doctors for doctors, providing them with reference tools, clinical guides, meeting and CPD tracking with new functionality being developed continuously. This free tool is helping clinicians to work more efficiently allowing them to focus on patients. With over 2,000 doctors already using the tool,  it is already having a major impact across the workforce”.

There are a number of challenges facing Hospital doctors and administrators in Ireland.  Hospital administrators need to track doctors’ attendances at meetings and seminars as part of doctors’ training, continuous professional development and registration requirements. Doctors often need to consult reliable information and calculate specific health metrics to assist them in the treatment of their patients. Additionally, some doctors move from hospital to hospital on a regular basis  as part of their training. They need to find out specific information related to their new hospital such as; new tax numbers, contact details and induction information. These challenges can be frustrating and time consuming for both administrators and doctors.

The solution to these challenges is HospitalBuddy. It is provided free of charge to healthcare professionals, hospital administrators and their staff. The HospitalBuddy app provides hospital administrators and healthcare professionals with administrative support and education resources. It supports meeting tracking, clinical and non-clinical resources, information sharing and staff communication. Hospital administrators can choose which of the features they wish to use in their particular hospital.

There is also huge value to the doctor. The HospitalBuddy app gives doctors valuable information and resources, both clinical and non-clinical all in one place. By the end of the HIHI pilots, over 2,000 doctors and 11 hospitals were using HospitalBuddy. The adoption of the app by doctors continues to grow steadily and has become particularly important at the time of the rotation of NCHDs. Doctors have reported using the app for finding accommodation, registering attendance meeting needed for their CPD points, as well as, finding and sharing clinical information with colleagues and students. One such hospital doctor, Dr Patrick O’Connor, Registrar in Cardiology, Limerick University Hospital outlined the benefits of the app. “HospitalBuddy is an all round doctor app. One minute I’ll be using the app to find accommodation, the next minute I’m calculating a score, and then I’ll be opening it up to show a SHO a diagram on how to manage (Afib) atrial fibrillation. It saves so much time. It is hard to know how when managed without it.” 

The benefits can be seen across the hospitals. Hospital administrators and medical manpower managers have enjoyed the benefits of the meeting tracker and information sharing features and have suggested additional functionality which the company has already implemented.  Niamh Allen, CNM II, SIVUH and HIHI team member praised the benefits of the app. “The South Infirmary Victoria University Hospital Cork was delighted to pilot ‘Hospital Buddy’. The pilot enabled hospital doctors to attend tutorials by logging into a device outside of the tutorial time which allowed for less disruption in patient care. Hospital buddy also made collating attendees more efficient. Policies and changes to practice were also uploaded to the system storing all the information in the one place improved efficiency and allowed more time for direct patient care”, 

From the company’s perspective the pilot was invaluable as it received valuable feedback and suggestions from both hospital doctors and administrators, which has assisted them in the design and development of the app. The feedback also highlighted other use cases for this technology, which the company is currently developing.

Joe Newell, CEO HospitalBuddy highlighted HIHI’s role in the product pilot. “When we launched HospitalBuddy, we knew we had built features that would be of great benefit to both hospitals and healthcare professionals nationwide. However, we needed help to get HospitalBuddy in front of key stakeholders in hospitals. HIHI was instrumental in this process and also helped us to roll out pilots in a number of hospitals. HIHI has also been a great sounding board when it comes to new initiatives that we have considered. Our first year has exceeded all our expectations, with over 2,000 healthcare professionals downloading the app, and we are very thankful to Jane O’ Flynn and her colleagues for their help and support to date.”

HIHI announces another new team member, Dr. Michael Twomey PhD

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Health Innovation Hub Ireland is delighted to announce that Dr Michael Twomey PhD has joined HIHI as a Senior Clinical Research Manager. He will be based at HIHI’s HQ at UCC’s Western Gateway Building. Michael is also a  founder of I Know me ltd., – a digital health company, adjunct lecturer in Business Information Systems in UCC and in the HSE MSc Digital Health Transformation in UL.

His research interests include health innovation, design, design thinking, and empowerment of stakeholders through information.

Graduating with a BSc (Hons) from UCC, Michael began his career as a biochemist, later qualifying in Computer Science (Hons) in UCC and working as a senior IT consultant with a multinational IT consultancy company. Following on from this, Michael founded an IT company in 2003, which provided professional IT services to several domestic and international companies. During his time as CEO, Michael graduated in Cloud Strategy and Innovation (Hons) and was subsequently awarded a master’s in data business (Hons) with the Irish Management Institute.

In 2017, Michael departed from the firm to engage in fulltime research, an Irish Research Council awardee, he completed his PhD in 2020. He is also an associate of the Irish Management Institute, with over twenty years of experience working on innovation and IT projects in a range of industries, including healthcare. To date his research has been published in leading academic outlets and has received several awards.

 

 

 

Spotlighting a HIHI pilot with My OT & Me with the potential to reduce paediatric OT waiting lists

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Health Innovation Hub Ireland were delighted to work with My OT & Me an Irish start-up founded by Jessica Kennedy, Senior Paediatric Occupational Therapist and Seán Ó Tuama. My OT & Me is an online paediatric occupational therapy (OT) resource to support children and families who are in need of OT support. It aims
to support and empower as many families as possible in an innovative, accessible and interactive way. The focus is on positive child development, encouraging independence and creating confident children. Paediatric Occupational Therapy helps children and young people with different needs and abilities to become as independent as possible by developing the skills they need to perform the purposeful activities that make up everyday life.

HSE Primary Care Occupational Therapy Services are experiencing increased numbers of referrals. This can be challenging particularly in times of limited resources, long waiting lists and redeployment of existing staff to COVID-19 testing duties. There is also a significant demand for private paediatric OT services in Ireland amongst parents, caregivers, educators, professionals and students.

Jane O’ Flynn acting Operations Manager HIHI welcomed the pilot “It is really important that children receive early intervention for their occupational therapy needs. The HIHI pilot of the My OT & Me programme with HSE community paediatric OTs in Cork and their clients demonstrated how children and their families benefited from completing this combined eHealth and activity programme at home. There is great potential for this innovative programme to help over 18,000 children waiting from HSE paediatric OT assessments in Ireland.”

My OT & Me’s platform is a unique telehealth-based product providing online paediatric occupational therapy resources to support children and families who are in need of OT support. It provides information through structured high quality educational videos for parents covering a range of OT topics. Children are provided with My OT & Me’s product, Octobox to support them with skill acquisition in a fun and interactive way.

Health Innovation Hub Ireland supported the My OT & Me Innovation Journey via a pilot with North Lee Primary Care Occupational Therapy Department, HSE with twenty-six children and their families in Cork who were awaiting intervention services. The children and their parents or guardians undertook a dedicated 12 week My OT & Me programme which concluded in February 2022.

A significant outcome of the pilot was that

  • half of all children did not need further HSE OT support at the end of the programme. As this programme is carried out by parents and children at home.
  • it can free up OTs to see other children and thus help reduce waiting times.
  • The families who piloted the My OT & Me programme at home responded positively. The programme gave 100% of families more confidence and provided them with practical strategies to support their child and they found the format of the programme manageable.
  • 85% reported that the programme gave them additional knowledge and understanding.
  • 71% said their child enjoyed the programme, they saw an improvement in their child’s skills and the programme helped the child meet the goals set for them.

The feedback from the OTs was also positive. 100% of OTs would recommend it to other Paediatric OTs, 80% would like to continue to have access to the programme for their clients and 60% considered that the piloted programme would help reduce waiting times.

Speaking on conclusion of the successful HIHI pilot Jess Kennedy Co-founder, My OT & Me said “ Having access to clinical teams through a dedicated programme like this has fast-tracked our commercial implementation.”

Read the case study and a selection of our other work here Case Studies – Health Innovation Hub Ireland (hih.ie)