‘Dragons’ back healthy ideas with £600,000

IT’S a yes! Panellists (l-r) Kath Wynne-Jones, Julie Daines and Craig Dean

THOUSANDS of Oldham patients will benefit from new health innovations following a Dragons’ Den-style funding event.

A panel of patients, NHS leaders, clinicians and business people chose ideas to deliver better health services for funding by Oldham Clinical Commissioning Group.

Around £600,000 will now be invested in the 23 successful bids - made by GPs, practice nurses, charities, local authority teams and other partners - over two days.

Ideas to get the thumbs up included a new healthy living programme for patients with diabetes, a pioneering primary-care pain service, and a minor-ailments service, designed to relieve some of the pressure on accident and emergency services.

Successful bidders will now meet their sponsors from Oldham CCG and agree ways to turn their ideas into reality.

Ian Wilkinson, chief clinical officer for the CCG, said: “It was a very successful event, with some truly innovative ideas pitched.

The group’s finance director, Julie Daines, added: “By committing money from the CCG budget we were confident we would generate innovation bids.”

Kath Wynne-Jones, CCG’s director of performance and delivery, said: “This process was an excellent way to engage our members and wider network in helping to help shape the next stage of our development.”

And Craig Dean, chief executive of Web Applications and Oldham President of the Greater Manchester Chamber of Commerce, added: “In the commercial sector, coming up with innovative ways of working is part of the day job. I was really pleased to see the same principles applied to the way health solutions are being developed.”