The Strategic Implementation Group (SIG) was established to oversee implementation of HITF outputs. Co-chaired by the relevant Health Minister, latterly, Lord Hunt and Sir Chris O'Donnell, the Group met for the final time on 26 February 2007. SIG published its report on 6 March.

This report is the culmination of the joint work taken forward by the Strategic Implementation Group which was set up by the Healthcare Industries Task Force (HITF) to oversee the implementation of the 9 key HITF outputs. It also gives a clearer picture of what the medical device industry needs in order to grow and prosper.

At its final meeting on 26 February 2007, the Strategic Implementation Group agreed six recommendations which are detailed in the report:

• Development of a procurement framework
• Review of SME support
• UK marketing and trade development strategy
• measurement and analysis of the UK healthcare industry environment
• competitiveness of the European medical devices industry
• creation of a new mechanism for continuing the engagement between Government and industry
  

Collaborative working with key stakeholders has enabled practical measures and mechanisms to be identified to help improve patient access to the latest treatments medical technology companies can provide. Key achievements include:

• establishment of a National Innovation Centre
• inclusion of medical devices and technologies within the work programme of the UK Clinical Research Collaboratio
• ongoing development of a new device evaluation service
• development of a procurement framework
• launch of a training hub to support use by the NHS of advanced training tools for key innovative surgical procedures
• development of two pilot Healthcare Technology Cooperatives
  

Top

copyright: © | last updated

Association of the British Healthcare Industries

DH Industry Branch

Download Adobe Acrobat reader for PDF files

Help with Portable Document Format (PDF)