Projects harnessing cutting-edge technology, innovation and
research have been launched today to help the physical and mental
health of veterans, and in the future have the potential to
contribute to mainstream and improved treatments by the NHS.
The newly announced recipients of the Office for Veterans’
Affairs’ (OVA) Health Innovation Fund, delivered in collaboration
with the Defence and Security Accelerator (DASA), include leading
academic institutions, private sector companies and charities
from across the UK.
The OVA has also confirmed today that the UK will host a Five
Eyes International Ministerial Conference on Veterans later
this year. The conference will bring together partners from
the United States, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand to discuss
and share best practice on veterans issues.
The funding will help spur innovation, ensure that treatments are
informed by the latest research and developments in clinical
care, and bring the best of UK science and technology to the
forefront of veterans health.
Twenty two innovative projects are having funding confirmed
today, including:
- Four linked projects by Imperial College London to develop
prosthetics, including innovative implants to treat limb pain.
The projects will make use of cutting edge surgery techniques and
how they can improve prosthetics for patients.
- NuTissu, a company specialising in advanced material
technology, will develop E-Plasters - an innovative wound healing
technique that uses advanced biomaterials and electricity to
accelerate the healing of skin wounds. The E-Plasters will be
explored to see how they could improve veterans’ quality of life,
and also reduce the costs of long term chronic wound care.
- Scientists at the University of Birmingham will use
biomarkers in blood and saliva from veterans who have suffered
traumatic brain injury to develop an algorithm to predict
prognosis and treatment.
- The University of Exeter and company IonaMind will develop
and evaluate AI powered tech to treat depression and anxiety in
female veterans.
Minister for Veterans’ Affairs said:
I’m delighted that we’re providing funding to these projects
today. Utilising the latest developments in research and clinical
care, these initiatives will spur innovation and new techniques
to treat veterans - both with physical and mental health
conditions - who have been injured in the line of duty.
The Minister for Veterans’ Affairs yesterday (Tuesday 21st
February) visited NuTissu, a biotech company based in Nottingham.
The Minister visited their London based laboratory, speaking with
staff and leadership from the company, to learn more about their
project and how it could improve the healthcare outcomes of
veterans.
On the visit the Minister was shown a demo of the app which
veterans would use to control the E-Plaster, as well as, the
process for how the final products will be made from the
innovative materials designed by the company.
Secretary of State at the new Department for Science, Innovation
& Technology, , said:
It is great to see the Office for Veterans’ Affairs providing
funding to drive forward cutting-edge science and technology that
will change lives.
Starting with those who have been wounded while serving this
country, these initiatives have the potential to be utilised more
widely, putting UK healthcare at the forefront of innovation.
The Veterans’ Health Innovation Fund is one of many schemes put
in place by this government to improve the healthcare on offer to
veterans across the country. These include Op COURAGE and the
Veterans Trauma Network.
Notes to editors:
- The Veterans’ Health Innovation Fund was announced in the
Autumn 2021 Budget and Spending Review by the then Chancellor of
the Exchequer, .
- The projects were chosen through competitive competition,
with the Minister for Veterans’ Affairs deciding which
organisations would receive funding.
-
The Veterans’ Health Innovation Fund competition was run by
the Defence and Security Accelerator (DASA), on behalf of the
OVA. DASA finds and funds exploitable innovation to support
UK defence and security quickly and effectively, and support
UK prosperity.
- Full list of winning projects:
- Imperial College London - Subject to contract signing -
four separate, yet complementary projects looking at further
research to improve prosthetics for amputee veterans. The
four projects will consider areas including evaluating direct
skeletal fixation surgery (an innovative surgery that helps
veterans who require prosthetics); investigating the
long-term consequences of low back pain linked to prosthetic
users; delivering an orthopaedic implant for amputees to
treat residual limb pain and ulceration; and predicting the
impact of socket redesign, daily task adherence, and
prosthetic fixation on long term bone health.
- Blesma: The Limbless Veterans Charity to explore the
lived experience of injured veterans who are wheelchair and
electronic powered vehicle users, and to provide a comparison
of the effectiveness of selected categories of assistive
technologies.
- Imperial College London and Anglia Ruskin University -
Subject to contract signing - to evaluate the Veterans Trauma
Network (an NHS England treatment pathway for veterans with
physical health needs), with a view to supporting its future
growth and development.
- Imperial College London and Northumbria University -
Subject to contract signing - to create a comprehensive
evidence base for the physical health needs of the veteran
community.
- University of Birmingham to evaluate blood biomarkers
against visual and clinical assessments from veterans
who have suffered traumatic brain injury to help develop an
algorithm to predict prognosis in veterans.
- Imperial College London to the ADVANCE study, the Defence
Medical Rehabilitation Centre, Wellcome Trust and Defence
Medical Services - Subject to contract signing - asubject to
contract signing - to investigate the characteristics of
combat injury, and key medical and surgical interventions to
evaluate whether these have a beneficial effect on the
long-term outcomes in UK veterans.
- Forward Assist to look at and develop a clear
understanding of the multiple and complex issues faced by
military veterans with lived experience of sexual assault,
and identify gaps in service provision.
- Cardiff University - Subject to contract signing - to
develop online military-focused cognitive behavioural therapy
to support veterans with PTSD.
- NuTissu ltd (working with EG Technologies, Hallmark Care
Homes, Centre for Process Innovation Limited, University of
Nottingham FRAME labs, KTN and Conductive Transfers ltd) to
develop E-Plasters to enable a degree of self-management of
rapid and complete wound healing to reduce the risk of
veterans developing pressure sores later in life.
- Radii Devices Ltd (working with the Universities of Bath
and Southampton, Blesma, Portsmouth Hospitals University NHS
Trust and Unai) to develop an app to allow prosthesis users
to record discomfort, with the data enabling insights for
prosthetists to optimise comfort and deliver socket fitting
that is right-first-time.
- Anglia Ruskin University, Leeds Beckett University, The
King’s Centre for Military Health Research, the Veterans’
Trauma Network and Defence Medical Welfare Services to
co-design recommendations for improving service delivery and
care pathways for female veterans’ physical health.
- Bravo Victor working with Esme’s Umbrella and Moorfields
Eye Hospital to improve understanding of visual
hallucinations among military veterans and refine management
strategies to ensure individuals receive an accurate
diagnosis and appropriate healthcare.
- University of Leicester - Subject to contract signing -
to develop an online test to maximise the accessibility of
assessments carried out in medical practices or independently
at home, and provide clinicians fast access to information
that is crucial to the accurate diagnosis of PTSD.
- St John and Red Cross Defence Medical Welfare Service,
NHS Lanarkshire and the University of the West of Scotland to
look at how welfare support and technology can benefit
isolated veterans in Lanarkshire, with eventual application
across the UK.
- University of Exeter and IonaMind to develop and evaluate
an artificial intelligence-supported intervention to treat
depression and anxiety in female veterans.
- King’s College London and Combat Stress to enhance a
digital application so it can better support female veterans
with problem drinking.
- Umio (working with Cognuse, a Comprehensive
Rehabilitation Platform for the Continuum of Care) to develop
a veteran chronic pain peer-support and
self-learning/management platform, which will help veterans
to live better and well with long-term pain.
- Swansea University to evaluate the efficacy and
cost-effectiveness of a smartphone-based app to reduce
harmful gambling and PTSD symptoms among veterans.
- Northumbria University to assess the impacts of, and
risks associated with, military service on brain health in
female veterans.
