The Scotsman

Finding the right formula for further advances

David Lee was on hand at The Scotsman’s annual Life Sciences Conference to hear experts in the sector point to a future where innovation is ‘an enabler for recovery, reform and sustainabi­lity’

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The post-pandemic crisis in the NHS provides a great opportunit­y to introduce big new healthcare ideas, an expert told The Scotsman’s annual Life Sciences Conference.

Professor Dame Anna Dominiczak, Scotland’s Chief Scientist (Health), said: “The NHS needs to stay healthy for our future, and it’s not at the moment – that’s the truth.

“But every problem brings with it a unique opportunit­y, and the huge pressures on health and social care postcovid means that everyone is ready for urgent disruption.”

This “burning platform” opens up the opportunit­y for innovation, which is “an enabler for recovery, reform and sustainabi­lity”, Dominiczak told the event.

She added: “There is a lot of innovation, but it is slightly disorganis­ed. There must be a clear pathway from initial discovery to adoption.”

One way forward, she suggested, would be to use regional test beds and link them up with the “Tech Scalers” proposed by Scotland’s first chief entreprene­ur, Mark Logan, to allow life sciences to link up with – and benefit from – entreprene­urship in the technology industry.

Dominiczak continued by saying it is crucial to have a “Once for Scotland” approach to innovation – so that great ideas are used in all 14 health boards in a similar way, not introduced piecemeal: “We need to consider radical innovation­s which can be quickly adopted across Scotland. We need to simplify the way of doing that without losing the quality control.”

Dominiczak, who took up her post in July, used three examples of potential “quick wins” – digital dermatolog­y, where patients send in pictures of their symptoms, which could reduce in-person appointmen­ts by up to 70 per cent; a technology-based closedloop system for patients with Type-1 diabetes; and a genetic test to reduce the amount of people hospitalis­ed by adverse reactions to medicines, which currently account for 11 per cent of all hospital admissions.

There would need to be “prioritisa­tion and selection” of the best innovation­s, she told the conference, saying no-one could promise that the right choices would always be made: “We need to be prepared to fail, which is difficult in current times, but it is vital to have a highrisk appetite. If we do not take risks, we are not going to innovate.”

The conference heard that Scotland’s life sciences industry is now worth £7.4 billion, and set to smash through its £8bn turnover target by 2025.

Dave Tudor, speaking as a board member of digital transforma­tion consultanc­y DTG, said that a culture change to embrace digitalisa­tion is crucial to future life sciences success.

He added: “If we do digital right, we get drugs to patients much more quickly, reduce their cost by 30-50 per cent and reduce the industry’s carbon footprint. It can be a differenti­ator.”

At the moment, he said, adoption of digital technology is “good, bad and ugly – companies doing well, just starting out, and burying their heads in the sand”.

He explained: “No-one has fully cracked it. Members of leadership teams often have different ideas on how to proceed with digital transforma­tion, and unless they find a common approach, they will lose money and momentum.

“Manufactur­ing is still relying on human beings and paperwork and needs to be controlled in a much more sophistica­ted way.”

Tudor also said it was vital not to “leave the back door open” to thousands of cyber attacks aimed at stealing innovation and intellectu­al property. His former employer, GSK, suffered more than 20,000 cyber attacks every year, he added.

Yvonne Crabbe, head of people strategy execution at Merck, also addressed the conference, saying the life sciences industry had to embrace digital because clients expected it. Merck started out with a team of five in its digital and automation programme and now had 20 people, she added.

Alison Mcintosh, director of SULSA, the Scottish Universiti­es Life Sciences Alliance, told delegates that there are large numbers of graduates coming out of STEM (science, technology, engineerin­g, and mathematic­s) degrees in Scotland, but they were not being funnelled effectivel­y enough into STEM jobs. She feels there is still more to do to ensure graduates have the right skills to work in life sciences, adding: “We need universiti­es to take more responsibi­lity for skills and not just knowledge.”

There is also a shortage of internship­s available in industry, Mcintosh observed. However, she stressed that there is some great work being done on virtual and augmented reality training across the sector, which is having a positive impact on potential recruits.

Mark Cook, co-chair of the Industry Leadership Group at Life Sciences Scotland, said there needs to be a more efficient “front door” entry point to life sciences, so newcomers know where to look for advice and support. “There is tremendous support for every corner of life sciences, but it can be a challenge [finding that door] in the first place, and we need to do better.”

However, John Arthur, director of CPI’S Medicines Manufactur­ing Innovation Centre, said that the collaborat­ive nature of the industry means this could be overcome.

He advised: “Don’t worry about which door you walk in, we can help. We might not always know the answer, but we will know someone who does – because we all talk.”

Cook agreed with the benefits of this approach, saying: “We are all mentors in this industry; everyone knows something that someone else will be grateful to know about.”

Weneedtobe prepared to fail, which is difficult in current times, but it is vital to have a high-risk appetite. If we do not take risks, we are not going to innovate

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 ?? ?? Dame Anna Dominiczak, Scotland’s Chief Scientist (Health) speaks to the floor at the conference, where she advocated for more
effective collaborat­ion within the sector. Event
pictures: Phil Wilkinson
Dame Anna Dominiczak, Scotland’s Chief Scientist (Health) speaks to the floor at the conference, where she advocated for more effective collaborat­ion within the sector. Event pictures: Phil Wilkinson

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