The latest innovations in healthcare, including accreditations and grant success, NAD testing, an integrated retirement community in Kew, health inclusivity, dental referrals, new cancer services and digital investment.
NHS SBS secures national framework endorsements
NHS Shared Business Services (NHS SBS) has successfully secured formal endorsement for two of its major framework agreements – “Consultancy and Advisory Services for Health” and “Legal Services for Health” – under NHS England’s Framework Accreditation Scheme. This follows an assessment process that started last year and places NHS SBS among just three accredited national routes to market for management consultancy and legal services. The endorsement reinforces the organisation’s position as a procurement partner for the NHS as it seeks to improve consistency and transparency across its third-party spending.
Launched in 2024, the Framework Accreditation Scheme is central to NHS England’s drive to standardise how the health service buys goods and services, which currently accounts for an estimated £30 billion in annual spend. Of that total, around £17 billion is spent through framework agreements. Under the NHS Standard Contract, healthcare organisations must now use frameworks that are either fully endorsed or delivered by an accredited framework host, a shift designed to strengthen assurance and reduce procurement variation across the system.
“This accomplishment is a strong recognition of the quality, compliance, and value our teams deliver every day for our NHS customers,” said Helen Spink, head of policy, capability, framework accreditation and programme management at NHS SBS.
The organisation also continues to maintain a presence in the digital landscape, with five endorsed digital framework agreements already recognised within NHS England’s pre-existing list of approved procurement routes.
Midlands Air Ambulance Charity receives £85,096 grant for critical care
Midlands Air Ambulance Charity has been awarded a grant of £85,096 from The Vinehill Trust, a UK-based organisation that supports initiatives across health, heritage and music. This funding is earmarked for the purchase of four Zoll X Series monitors, alongside six months’ worth of essential consumables.
The Zoll X Series is a compact monitor and defibrillator specifically engineered for emergency medical services and pre-hospital environments.
The technology, which features real-time feedback and monitoring capabilities, is typically only found within major trauma units or specialist critical care settings. By deploying these monitors in the field, the charity’s flight doctors and critical care paramedics can stabilise patients more effectively at the scene of an incident. This intervention is designed to give critically ill or injured patients the best possible chance of survival and recovery following life-changing emergencies.
“Air ambulance charities save lives every day but receive no government funding,” said Mohammad Tamimi, trustee at The Vinehill Trust. “We are delighted to support Midlands Air Ambulance Charity by providing funding for equipment that will make a real difference to its frontline work.”
The investment ensures that the Midlands Air Ambulance Charity can continue to deliver its 24-hour a day service.
Elysian Residences reaches milestone at Kew development
The Watermark, a purpose-built integrated retirement community in Kew, Richmond, has officially reached its topping out milestone. Conceived and operated by Elysian Residences in partnership with Octopus Capital and Pension Insurance Corporation, the premium development is situated on a two-acre riverside site. The project team recently gathered for a ceremony to mark the completion of the building’s highest point, celebrating the collaborative effort between stakeholders and the development partner, McAleer & Rushe.
The masterplan for the site, designed by Collado Collins, features 88 retirement apartments and a guest suite, all orientated to take full advantage of the Thames-side location. Beyond private housing, the community will provide wellbeing and leisure facilities, including a gym, swimming pool, library and two restaurants. Sustainable landscaping by Macfarlane + Associates will connect the architecture to its natural surroundings, retaining the majority of the area’s mature trees and shrubs.
“Topping out at The Watermark marks an important milestone for this project. This is a rare riverside setting, close to Kew Gardens and village,” said Elysian Residences chief executive Gavin Stein. He noted that the focus remains on delivering service and carefully considered amenities to ensure life for homeowners is fulfilling and engaging.
The development is expected to be completed in the spring next year, with the project also aiming to deliver long-term social value through ongoing engagement with local residents and primary schools.
NADMED and Altheome partner to expand NAD testing
NADMED, a spin-out from the University of Helsinki, has announced a partnership with specialist diagnostics firm Altheome to bring advanced NAD testing to UK clinics and consumers.
The collaboration will integrate NADMED’s technology – the only CE-marked test for measuring Nicotinamide Adenine Dinucleotides (NAD) – into Altheome’s biomarker services. This enables healthcare providers to offer NAD measurement via venous blood draws as part of precision medicine and wellness programmes.
NADs are essential forms of vitamin B3 that regulate energy metabolism and DNA repair, with imbalanced levels often linked to metabolic disorders and neurodegenerative diseases. The NADMED method is unique in its ability to measure both NAD+ and NADH, providing a ratio that offers insights into mitochondrial function and biological ageing. While NAD testing has historically been slow and expensive, this lab-based solution delivers fast, cost-effective, and scalable analysis that was previously difficult to achieve.
“Partnering with NADMED allows us to offer clinics and, soon, consumers access to one of the most important metabolic biomarkers through a robust, clinically validated technology,” said Altheome chief executive Adam Shellard.
South West ICBs partner with NEC for unified dental referrals
Seven Integrated Care Boards (ICBs) across the South West are set to go live with NEC Rego in 2026 to deliver a single dental electronic referral service (e-RS). This regional rollout will manage referral activity across 12 dental pathways and support around 5.5 million people. The unified system will connect over 900 dental practices and 17 acute providers, with an estimated 160,000 referrals expected to be processed annually.
By moving to a single service, the region wants to achieve a consistent approach to the quality and triage of referrals while gaining clearer visibility into service demand and capacity. This digitised route is expected to reduce variation in care and provide commissioners with the data needed to identify pressure points and prioritise service development. Ultimately, the system is designed to cut avoidable rework for dentists and ensure patients reach the necessary specialist care faster.
“Introducing a single referral service across the South West will reduce variation and give clinicians a simpler, more consistent route into specialist dental care,” said Matthew Jerreat, the regional chief dental officer for the South West.
The contract runs for an initial three years and marks a significant expansion for NEC Rego, which now supports more than half of the national market for digital dental referrals across England.
Haleon sets 2030 goal for global health inclusivity
Weybridge-based consumer health firm Haleon has announced an update to its social impact strategy. It wants to provide more than 300 million people every year the tools to manage their everyday health by 2030.
The initiative focuses on improving health literacy, which the company identifies as a critical gateway to better clinical outcomes. By advocating for health literacy to be embedded into national policy frameworks, Haleon aims to make complex medical information more accessible and easier for underserved populations to navigate.
To support this goal, the company is launching the “Better Everyday Health Project” in partnership with humanitarian organisation CARE International. The programme will begin in Kenya, where community health workers will be trained as community health entrepreneurs to promote self-care and distribute essential health products. This grassroots approach is designed to tackle the barriers faced by the one in four adults globally who currently have low health literacy, helping them prevent serious illnesses through better-informed daily habits.
“Health literacy is one of the most powerful tools for helping people feel more confident and in control of their everyday health,” said Sarah McDonald, the firm’s vice president of health inclusivity and sustainability. The company’s strategy also addresses the environmental impact on public health, noting that many conditions are worsened by climate change.
Having already reached 74 million people through initiatives like mobile oral health services in India, Haleon is now scaling these efforts to reach 1 billion more consumers by the end of the decade.
Spire Healthcare achieves RCN accreditation for clinical programme
Spire Healthcare has been awarded accreditation by the Royal College of Nursing (RCN) for its “Driving Clinical Excellence” (DCE) development programme. This recognition confirms that the initiative meets rigorous national standards for professional education, reflecting contemporary safety guidance and clinical policy. The programme is designed to support registered nurses, allied health professionals and pharmacy staff in strengthening their clinical judgement and leadership capabilities.
The hybrid curriculum comprises 25 hours of accredited learning, covering core priorities such as compassionate leadership, quality improvement methodologies, and the management of deteriorating patients. It also supports digital literacy, aligning with Spire’s five-year digital transformation strategy. Participants engage in a mix of virtual study days, self-directed portfolio activities, and research-based reading, ensuring that evidence-based practice is at the heart of patient care.
“DCE is designed to empower our colleagues with the knowledge, skills and confidence they need to deliver outstanding care for every patient, every time,” said Spire Healthcare’s chief nursing office and chief operating officer Lisa Grant.
Altera Digital Health awarded 10-year EPR contracts in Greater Manchester
Stockport NHS Foundation Trust and Tameside and Glossop Integrated Care NHS Foundation Trust have awarded 10-year contracts to Altera Digital Health to implement its Electronic Patient Record (EPR) platform. This investment is a milestone in the digital transformation of both trusts and aims to improve patient flow and align with the region’s ambition for a fully digitally enabled future. The new system will replace multiple siloed legacy tools with a single, real-time source of patient information.
By consolidating various clinical systems into one unified platform, the trusts expect to achieve substantial efficiency gains and strengthen patient safety through integrated clinical decision tools. Currently, staff must log into several different systems to gather essential data, a process that is both time-consuming and increases the risk of inconsistencies. The new EPR will enable clinicians to view and update records at the point of care, freeing up more time for direct patient interaction.
“I’m pleased… we can begin implementing the system to streamline workflows, connect care, and make important efficiency gains for our clinical staff,” said Peter Nuttall, director of informatics for both trusts.
With this latest agreement, Altera’s EPR is now projected to support the care of more than 10 million patients across the UK.
Asclepius MedTech secures £100,000 to tackle health inequalities
Leeds-based Asclepius MedTech has been named a winner of the Mayor’s Big Ideas Challenge, an initiative led by the Mayor of West Yorkshire to address health disparities. The company has been awarded £100,000 to scale Surgfit, its remote monitoring system designed to improve the safety and effectiveness of surgical care.
The funding, provided through the UK Shared Prosperity Fund, aims to accelerate technologies that support underserved communities across the region.
Surgfit is the first remote patient assessment system for both pre- and post-operative care, offering an alternative to traditional in-hospital tests. The firm says that currently, one third of patients miss vital surgical risk assessments because hospital-based testing is often inaccessible for frail or disabled individuals. In West Yorkshire specifically, patients from minority ethnic groups and the poorest communities are 50% more likely to miss these appointments. Surgfit replaces these visits with a disposable wearable sensor worn at home for seven days.
“Our goals are resolute: to improve surgical outcomes, reduce post-surgical complications and hospital readmissions across West Yorkshire, saving the NHS millions,” said Michael Morgan-Curran, chief executive of Asclepius MedTech. He emphasized that the technology is designed to empower all patients, regardless of their background or where they live.
GenesisCare expands Surrey oncology network with new SACT service
Independent specialist cancer care provider GenesisCare has added an eighth Systemic Anti-Cancer Therapy (SACT) service to its national network. Opening this winter, the new suite will expand the existing specialist centre in Guildford, Surrey.
The expansion ensures that patients from the surrounding areas can access a comprehensive range of treatments – including chemotherapy, immunotherapy, and cellular therapy – within a single, modern environment.
The facility is also set to become a dedicated research centre, providing patients with access to innovative drug regimes and clinical trials that may not be readily available elsewhere. This development completes what the firm calls a local oncology ecosystem, supported by a multidisciplinary team of clinicians specialising in gastrointestinal and breast cancers. By integrating these systemic therapies with existing wellbeing and exercise medicine facilities, the provider aims to reduce the need for excessive travel for patients across the South of England.
“The opening of this new GenesisCare SACT service marks an exciting and important milestone for our community, expanding access to world-class cancer services in a purpose-built, patient-centred environment,” said consultant medical oncologist Tony Dhillon. Panos Koliou, a specialist in breast cancer research, added that the new phase of growth would help bring evidence-based treatments and pioneering clinical trials to patients.
Phoenix Hospital Group launches new prostate MRI screening service
Independent healthcare provider Phoenix Hospital Group has launched a new prostate MRI cancer screening service, at its Harley Street hospital in central London and the Phoenix Chelmsford Hospital in Essex.
The service has been introduced to encourage men to take a proactive approach to their wellbeing, specifically targeting early detection of the most common cancer in men. By combining MRI technology with consultant-led care, the programme hopes to provide patients with rapid access to clear answers regarding their prostate health.
The screening pathway offers a package that covers every stage of the process, from an initial in-person consultation to a virtual follow-up. Each patient undergoes blood tests and urinalysis, including PSA (prostate-specific antigen) testing, followed by an MRI scan with contrast and Buscopan for a highly detailed view of the prostate. Results are interpreted by prostate radiologists, and no GP referral is required to access the service.
“Our new prostate MRI cancer screening service empowers men to take control of their health by offering advanced diagnostics, rapid results, and consultant-led guidance every step of the way,” said Karan Wadhwa, consultant urological surgeon at Phoenix Hospital Group.
The service is particularly recommended for men aged over 40 or those with a family history of the disease.
Digital programme reduces hospital stays in Herefordshire and Worcestershire NHS Trust
Herefordshire and Worcestershire Health and Care NHS Trust has reported a 15% reduction in patient length of stay following the first phase of its digital transformation. By implementing Alcidion’s Miya Precision platform across seven community hospitals, the Trust has successfully cut average hospital stays by approximately five days. The technology provides clinical teams with real-time visibility of discharge planning and bed availability which ensures that patients move through the care system more efficiently.
The first phase of the rollout introduced digital journey boards that consolidate essential discharge information, such as transport arrangements and social care provision, into a single view. This allows staff to identify potential delays early and manage the transfer of patients from acute hospitals into community services. The Trust has now entered phase two, introducing a feature that provides operational leaders with a live, consolidated view of bed capacity and operational pressures across the entire organisation.
“We want patients to spend the least amount of time in hospital that is clinically appropriate, supporting their wellbeing and enabling them to return home safely,” said Marisa Manning, deputy associate director at the Trust.
The Trust has said that it plans to extend these digital tools into mental health services to further improve capacity management and reduce out-of-area placements later this year.
