13th December 2013

Strength of Welsh Innovation highlighted at MediWales’ Awards

The MediWales Innovation Awards 2013 celebrated the fantastic achievements of life science companies and individuals from the NHS in Wales. A priority sector in a tough economy, Welsh industry’s innovative partnerships with the NHS and academic institutions significantly contribute to the health and wealth of Wales.

The 320-guest Awards Dinner, sponsored by National Institute for Social Care and Health Research (NISCHR), Abel & Imray, Geldards LLP, GX Group, and Elite Electronic Systems, was held at Cardiff’s National Museum on Tuesday 10th December to an audience of senior industry, NHS and government representatives.

Mark Drakeford, Welsh Government’s Minister for Health and Social Care opened the ceremony by presenting the Innovation within the NHS award. A further 2 awards were awarded to NHS Wales departments in addition to the 6 prestigious awards presented to industry.

The MediWales-commissioned Welsh life science sector film was launched at the Innovation Awards. The film depicts the quality and breadth of health technology as well as the connectivity between Wales’ industry, academic, NHS and professional services organisations, which enables the fast and effective development of innovative healthcare solutions.

Celebrating Welsh Life Science from MediWales on Vimeo.

The Innovation within the NHS Award was won by Velindre NHS Trust Medical Physics Department which provides scientific and technical services to the trust, whose Cancer Services Division treats over 4,000 new patients a year.

The department has developed a device for measuring constancy of radiation output, symmetry and energy of a clinical radiotherapy linear accelerator, using low cost photodiodes. This Award was sponsored by Frontier Medical.

A true industry- NHS collaboration was recognised this year, Cardiff University worked with E2L limited in Monmouth to develop the ScopeSim to a market ready product. This involved Dr David Williams, Abertawe Bro Morgannwg University Health Board, Anaesthetics Department, at Morriston Hospital and Professor Aidan Byrne, Graduate Studies, School of Medicine.

ScopeSim is a table top simulator which allows users at all levels to train for and practice using a wide range of optical investigation devices. This Award was sponsored by DTR Medical.

The NHS Judges’ Award was won by the Cwm Taf Health Board, Adult Speech and Language Therapy Department at the Royal Glamorgan Hospital for their Stroke Patient Passport. This comprises of a folder containing three booklets, each representing a portion of the stroke recovery journey.

The Passport addresses the need for a coordinated approach to stroke recovery and ensures that the stoke survivor remains central to this process.

The Innovation Award was won by Cellnovo which is a leading innovator in the field of mobile diabetes management. It specialises in introducing cutting edge technology to diabetes therapy to reduce the burden of diabetes on patients.

Cellnovo has developed a mobile diabetes management system comprising of the world’s smallest insulin patch pump and the first mobile touch screen handset with built-in glucose meter.

With the Cellnovo system, the information stored in the handheld device can be sent automatically to a secure website for access by patients and healthcare professionals. This award was sponsored by OSP Healthcare.

The Start-up Award was picked up by new joint venture TrakCel, which efficiently records and documents the movements and the temperature of regenerative and cell-based therapies,

TrakCel works to ensure that the right patient gets the right therapy at the right time and location. This Award was sponsored by World Courier.

EKF Diagnostics was recognised in the Outstanding Achievement Award. EKF Diagnostics is a leading manufacturer of healthcare diagnostics equipment. EKF produce a range of low cost blood analysers characterised by their ease of use, reliability and speed of results.

Between 2011 and 2012 EKF created a 20% increase in exports by developing sales in China, the United States, Europe, Asia, and Latin America. This award was sponsored by Sony UK Technology Centre.

The Award for Partnership with the NHS was won by Huntleigh Healthcare who design and manufacture high quality medical products for obstetrics, vascular assessment and patient monitoring. Huntleigh products are sold globally through dedicated distribution channels.

Huntleigh collaborated with Cwm Taf University Health Board and the University of South Wales to investigate the feasibility and value of a primary care screening strategy for Peripheral Arterial Disease. This award was sponsored by Teamworks Design.

Clinithink won the Judges Award- which is for a company that the judges feel embodies the spirit of the Innovation Awards and shows the most promise. The company is a leading provider of natural language processing technology to global healthcare markets and their CLiX product enables customers to extract valuable and actionable information from free text found in electronic medical records.

Clinithink has achieved a year on year 270% increase in exports by winning new business in the United States, South East Asia and Australia.

For the fourth year running Chromogenex Technologies won the Export Achievement Award. Chromogenex manufactures light and laser-based systems for the medical and cosmetic market, offering effective, non-invasive treatments for conditions such as acne and scarring, fat reduction, facial rejuvenation and hair removal. Chromogenex systems are sold in over 28 countries world-wide. Over the last year the company has achieved a 67% growth in export sales. This award was sponsored by Elite Electronic Systems.

For further press information contact Lucinda Dargavel on 029 2047 3456, lucinda.dargavel@mediwales.com