News

New Government funding to keep people well and increase employment in the North has been welcomed by one of the region’s leaders in health innovation.

Health Innovation Yorkshire & Humber Chief Executive Richard Stubbs was responding to an announcement that £25 million will be provided for Health and Growth Accelerators in South Yorkshire, West Yorkshire and North East and North Cumbria.

The accelerators, led by integrated care systems, bring together work and health support for people with health conditions – aiming to stop health problems becoming work problems.

The Health Innovation Network produced a report which showed the potential impact of reducing ill health is a £246bn growth in UK productivity, about 9.6 per cent of GDP.

For the NHS, keeping the workforce well and reducing absenteeism could free up 233 million hours of staff time – valued at £8.55bn – which could then be reinvested into patient care.

Richard said: “Keeping people well and in work is vital for our local economy – which is why I wholeheartedly welcome the Government’s £25m funding boost for projects in our region.”

The report Defining the Size of the Health Innovation Prize  was published by the national Health Innovation Network  last year.

Richard said: “The size of the prize for keeping our population well is proven – and the need is urgent for our families, work colleagues and everyone else living in God’s own country, which ranks third lowest in England for life expectancy for both men and women.”

Innovative approaches being used by Health and Growth Accelerators in West Yorkshire and South Yorkshire; and the North East and North Cumbria are targeting common causes of joblessness such as musculoskeletal conditions, metabolic disorders such as diabetes and hypertension, and mental illness.

Health Innovation Yorkshire & Humber is embedded in the integrated care systems where they provide innovation support including evaluations, governance and co-ordination of initiatives such as a sleep improvement project for 300 NHS staff in South Yorkshire identified as being at risk due to shift patterns or caring responsibilities.

At the start, 65 per cent reported overall fairly bad sleep quality. After two weeks, 67 per cent reported fairly good sleep quality – a complete turnaround and the result of Health Innovation Yorkshire & Humber working in partnership with NHS South Yorkshire, the Sleep Charity and sleep posture experts Levitex.

Health Innovation Yorkshire & Humber is supporting the South Yorkshire Health and Growth Accelerator with evaluation of their projects targeting at-risk groups with employment support such as physiotherapy, counselling, and tailored return-to-work plans.

The insights gathered will highlight best practices and areas for development and result in recommendations to inform future delivery and policy – spreading the knowledge beyond the region.

Richard added: “It is crucial we learn lessons together and at speed. Let’s collaborate to support our communities and turn the tide on worklessness due to ill health, for good.”