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Meet the Innovator: Rebecca Allam

Published by Ana Grilo
Head and shoulders image of Rebecca Allam

In this edition, we catch up with Rebecca Allam, co-founder and CEO at PreActiv. PreActiv's platform widens access to tailored and accessible prehabilitation, with the aim of removing barriers to effective preventative care and lowering the risk of digital exclusion.

Current job role: Co-founder and CEO

Name of innovation: PreActiv


Tell us about your innovation in a sentence.

PreActiv is a cost-effective solution, aligned with NHS perioperative care goals, preparing patients before surgery using smart technology to create individual prehabilitation programmes that can help to reduce complications and hospital stays.


What was the ‘lightbulb’ moment?

As NHS clinicians with over 25 years' combined experience, my co-founder, Dr Alec Snow, and I saw firsthand the huge impact poor preparation before surgery has on patients. However, if prehabilitation were implemented, the risk of complications could be reduced.

Moreover, due to a lack of preparation during wait times, some patients deteriorate and may have a worse outcome.
Recognising this gap, we saw an opportunity to make a difference. There was a clear need for affordable, individualised prehabilitation to improve patient outcomes and ease pressures on NHS trusts. That’s why we created PreActiv: a scalable, equitable solution designed to drive widespread change.


    What three pieces of advice would you give budding innovators?

    1. Focus on implementation.

    Even the best innovations will fail without proper implementation. Clear planning, effective integration and training, and interoperability are essential to ensure successful execution.

    2. Rigorous PPIE and user testing.

    PPIE and user testing with patients, the public, and hospital stakeholders is vital to ensure your product meets their needs, ensuring strong product-market fit and better outcomes in real-world use.

    3. Demonstrate your return on investment (ROI).

    Health economics are crucial for success. Proving your innovation’s financial and clinical ROI is essential to gaining stakeholder buy-in and ensuring your solution delivers long-term value to healthcare systems.


    What’s been your toughest obstacle?

    For us, and for a lot of HealthTech companies, procurement has been a tough obstacle. There’s real excitement among clinicians around innovation, especially in preventative care and prehabilitation, however, the NHS procurement process can be lengthy and fragmented. It’s been a steep learning curve for us, as each ICB and Trust has its own unique procurement process.

    There are ways to navigate it, and we’ve found frameworks especially helpful, alongside innovation funds and grants. The NHS is amazing, and once you are implemented within a site, it is lasting and reliable.


    What’s been your innovator journey highlight?

    There have been many highlights. Most notably, the patient feedback and the social impact of our innovation, especially in relation to the results of our clinical trial. Evidence-based medicine is a core value of ours, and knowing we’re making a real difference is incredibly rewarding. It’s the reason I stepped away from medicine to run PreActiv.

    Beyond that, the accelerators and programmes we've been awarded have been significant for us. As someone who has always championed women and female founders, winning the Women in Innovation award was a personal highlight. Recognition from prestigious accelerators like DigitalHealth.London and the NHS Innovation Accelerator was also a stand out moment for us. All of these were highly competitive processes, and receiving this recognition for what we are doing was a real highlight for me.


    What is the best part of your job now?

    There are many perks to owning your own company, but I’d say there are two key things I really value in this role. Firstly, the incredibly rewarding ability to see the tangible impact of our innovation on both patients and the healthcare system.

    The other equally best part of my role now is the ability to achieve a healthy work-life balance, which I believe is crucial. I have the autonomy to curate that balance not only for myself, but also for my employees. As someone who’s passionate about advocating for working mothers, I make it a priority to create a supportive environment for parents in the workplace.  Being able to foster a culture that values both professional growth and personal well-being is something I’m truly proud of.


    If you were in charge of the NHS and care system, what’s the one thing you’d do to speed up health innovation?

    I believe streamlining the procurement process is one of the key changes that could make a real difference. The NHS often gets a lot of bad press for being difficult to sell into, which leads many innovative companies to focus their solutions on private systems or look to markets like the U.S. instead. It’s a real shame, as working with the NHS is incredibly rewarding.

    We need to rethink not only how we represent innovation within the NHS, but also how we can create more efficient procurement processes, especially for start-ups and new innovations. I believe this would accelerate health innovation and generate a lasting impact on UK healthcare at scale.

    A typical day for you would include…

    • Juggling the demands of running PreActiv alongside life with three young children - no two days are the same!
    • Structuring my time around when I work best: early mornings and evenings for deep focus, avoiding meetings during those hours.
    • Using tools like Jira, and Trello boards to stay organised and prioritise my day.
    • Leading on strategy, partnerships, and product development - keeping our vision aligned with user needs and NHS priorities.
    • Maintaining an open-door culture within the team, encouraging rapid collaboration and problem-solving.
    • Carving out time for reflection and big-picture thinking while remaining agile to respond to fast-moving challenges.

    You can find PreActiv on their website, LinkedIn, and Twitter/X.

    Run before you can walk: The way to roll out AI

    Published and last updated by Ana Grilo

    Trying to implement Artificial Intelligence (AI) in the same way as other tech doesn’t work. Dr. Rishi Das-Gupta, CEO of the Health Innovation Network (HIN) South London; Dr. Dominique Allwood, CEO of Imperial College Health Partners; and Dr. Chris Laing, CEO of University College London Partners explore why a new model is needed for a new technology.

    The traditional quality improvement model of trialing technology can be described as “crawl, walk, run”. This approach, which starts small but then accelerates, tests an idea and steadily refines it with support. At each phase of work, problem solving allows for progressive scaling up - up to five times the size of the previous phase. It has the advantage of being a proven and safe way to improve healthcare.

    However, this model might not be the most appropriate for rolling out AI technology. As AI products evolve quickly, technical expertise is spread across multiple people in a healthcare organisation. It becomes inefficient for each organisation deploying technology to repeatedly answer all technical, safety, and security questions. Moving this slowly leaves patients and clinicians holding risk.

    A new model, offering the necessary flexibility, might be more accurately described as “run, walk, drag”.

    "Run, walk, drag" model

    Run

    The first “pilot” phase is often fast.

    Developing a product and deploying prototypes tends to happen quite quickly in a closely supervised environment. This is also helped by the fact that pilots are often run with local support from AI enthusiasts who help to demonstrate a proof of concept. Hence, projects often start off at a “run”.

    A recent example is the use of ambient voice technology in General Practice. Although products are not yet well integrated into the workflow or GP software packages, as they need local adaptation to get them to work seamlessly, tech-savvy GPs have been early to adopt them because they see benefits to staff and patients. They have developed workarounds for themselves and trained their colleagues directly where needed. They have “run” with the solution during pilots.

    Walk

    The early scale-up phase typically sees a decrease in pace.

    Here, solutions are being deployed in a wider range of services with more staff involved. Close supervision by the enthusiasts is no longer enough to carry an idea through. Typically, integration into workflows and training staff is needed. All these problems can be overcome but they require time and effort.

    We typically see unexpected challenges surface at this stage - particularly when a product changes staff roles in a patient’s care. For example, using AI to interpret CT scans at an NHS Trust in London has meant an early indication of abnormal findings is available almost immediately when the scan is completed. This put radiographers who performed the scan in the position of having to reassure patients, or break bad news. This isn’t a role that they have done traditionally. Some of them have rightly asked for training and support on how to sensitively deliver the news, to provide appropriate care for the patients they treat.

    We should expect early roll-out to be slower and, sometimes, more expensive than pilots. The use of mixed-methods evaluation of the roll-out, together with knowledge sharing, can support scaling AI and technology solutions in this phase. This support from health innovation networks accelerates this phase and provides valuable inputs for the final phase.

    Drag

    As technology diffusion continues, it then becomes important to engage those who are reluctant to use it. Although we sometimes see this reluctance due to unfamiliarity of technology or a general reluctance to change, more often it is that the product offers less benefit in their specific practice. General services and primary care might find that some product innovations would only benefit a very small proportion of their patients. Therefore, it’s often easier to roll-out new products in specialist centres where most patients would benefit from the innovation.

    For the groups showing reluctance, it isn’t necessarily enough that a solution is widely used. They will often demand that all potential risks and issues are worked through, and every potential downside is mitigated, before a change is made. Doing this requires more time and a sustained effort by transformation teams and local champions - hence this being the ‘drag’ phase. In the programmes we have run in our health innovation networks, simple activities such as sharing stories and impact from earlier adopters, are critical to maintaining momentum in roll-out.

    Eventually, when many staff are on a platform roll-out, it starts to accelerate again. When using the solution becomes the norm, staff expect to have access to it and the benefits it offers. At this stage, services which haven’t adopted it often have technical or financial reasons for not proceeding with changes, and these can be addressed directly.

    Understanding innovation

    With the deployment many technologies and AI solutions over the coming years, we believe we need to look at our processes and culture for innovation, as well as the products and solutions. Our thinking around this comes from discussions at a London AI roundtable that explored ideas on how to accelerate the adoption of AI. We recognised that the majority of healthcare providers are in the early stages of AI adoption. In creating an understanding around the processes and culture of innovation, we can help accelerate the adoption of innovation - benefiting patients and staff, while reducing costs at a critical time for the health and care system.

    There's an important question around what is done at the national level (once) and what is done at local/regional levels. This is especially important given the reshaping of functions currently housed in NHS England. For example, we believe we would benefit from a national team focusing on general aspects of safety and compliance, such as the Digital Technology Assessment Criteria (DTAC) compliance and data security. However, deployment needs to be tailored locally which is where Health Innovation Networks (HINs) can play a critical role.

    Technology adoption often has many components which are best handled locally because they depend on interactions with other operational processes and local technology solutions. The Health Innovation Network South London can support the rapid adoption of technology and new ways of working by helping to solve problems, evaluating roll-out, and sharing good practices across the network.

    How could this work?

    In London, there is an ongoing pilot for ambient voice technology which is due to report back soon. As part of this, London has agreed to adopt a framework called “T.E.S.T.” (Technology, Evaluation, Safety, Test) to rapidly and objectively evaluate readiness for spread. It focuses on:

    • Platform stability, cyber security and data assurance – seven domains with 20 key requirements. Compliance with each is a mandatory minimum to achieve certification.
    • Benefits assessment – 11 benefit domains with clinical effectiveness, cost-effectiveness, and workforce impact weighted more heavily.

    We believe using the above framework mitigates the risk of the current system in that it transparently looks at the impact on inequalities, acknowledges that a clinical mistakes will happen in both current and future practice (but should be managed), and appreciates the need around data security and the likelihood of poor co-ordination leading to inefficiency.

    Summary

    Our experience suggests five key learnings:

    • AI deployment can be done quickly and safely as can be demonstrated with the roll-out of AI and automation in primary care.

    • A regional/national approach to “whitelisting” products could accelerate testing products.

    • AI enthusiasts at the service front-line should be enabled and supported to test products in a safe way to identify what should be spread.

    • Risks surrounding deployment can be mitigated and managed and we should move quickly so that patients and clinicians are not left holding risk.

    • Support to deploy widely is best delivered locally dependent on the context and programmes to share learning during deployment are key to accelerating change.

    Your local Health Innovation Network

    The Health Innovation Network (HIN) is the innovation arm of the NHS and the collective voice of the 15 health innovation networks across England.

    Find your local HIN

    Meet the Innovator: Steve Roest

    Published and last updated by Ana Grilo
    Head and shoulders portrait photograph of Steve Roest, CEO of PocDoc.

    In this edition, we catch up with Steve Roest, CEO at PocDoc. PocDoc's 'Healthy Heart Check' smartphone-based technology can be used to provide patients with a full cholesterol profile check - at home, at work, or in their communities.

    Current job role: CEO

    Name of innovation: PocDoc 'Healthy Heart Check'


    Tell us about your innovation in a sentence.

    PocDoc’s Healthy Heart Check enables people to undertake a comprehensive cholesterol profile from their smartphone, directly into the NHS app, which includes: BMI score, calculated heart age, and a ten-year risk assessment for heart attacks or strokes - all in under 10 minutes.


    What was the ‘lightbulb’ moment?

    My passion for this business stems from a deeply personal experience. When my dad suffered a major stroke caused by undiagnosed cardiovascular disease (CVD), it was a wake-up call. I realised that it not only had an emotional impact on my family and I, it had a significant financial impact on the healthcare system too.

    The cost to the NHS for looking after him likely exceeded seven figures - an excessive cost that could have been avoided with early detection and treatment. The World Heart Federation reports that around 80% of CVD, including heart disease and stroke, are preventable.

    This realisation drove home the critical importance of early diagnostics, particularly digital tools that make screening more accessible. This personal journey ultimately led to the creation of PocDoc, a British born digital diagnostics company designed to address the growing burden of chronic diseases, including CVD, which affects over 7.4 million people in the UK.

    PocDoc's Healthy Heart Check aims to increase access to cardiovascular disease screenings to help ease the pressure on the overwhelmed healthcare systems in the UK. It is estimated that each digital health check could save 20 minutes of NHS time — freeing up thousands of GP appointments and helping cut NHS waiting times.

      We’ve been delighted with our growth to date and the support we’ve received from our investors - which includes the only NHS-anchored venture capital fund. In addition to the NHS, PocDoc has nationwide partnerships with some of the largest community pharmacy chains including: Asda, Well Pharmacy, and the UK’s biggest online pharmacy, Pharmacy2U. Our Healthy Heart Check is a fundamental tool in the preventative care journey.


        What three pieces of advice would you give budding innovators?

        1. Begin with a valid problem statement that can turn into a mission.

        History is littered with health technology innovations that have no buy-in from customers because they solve problems people don’t have or won’t pay for. Always remain focused on developing a product or service that genuinely meets the needs of your target audience, whether that’s for patients, clinicians, or another community. To achieve this, involve them at every stage of the process. Their feedback will not only ensure your offering is relevant and effective but will also help you identify areas for improvement.

        2. Be prepared to adapt to changes within the industry.

        The healthcare sector is constantly evolving, so it’s essential to stay informed and up to date. Be open to feedback and ready to adjust your overall strategy in response. Embracing change and listening to those around you will help ensure your approach remains relevant and effective in an ever-changing landscape.

        3. Be humble and seek to learn.

        You will find healthcare is full of people who care about making an impact and want to help others. If you are humble and ask for guidance, people will go out of their way to help you.


        What’s been your toughest obstacle?

        Bringing the physical, digital, clinical, and interoperability together with the NHS system in a highly scalable, usable platform has been one of the major challenges. Our Microfluidic Assay Platform is proprietary, so we knew keeping operations and manufacturing in-house would work best for us. 

        From day one, we set out to fully understand the unmet clinical needs in cardio, metabolic, and renal disease prevention. Our goal was to address these entire needs, not just a fraction of them. This involved hundreds of hours of talking with clinicians and patients before we even started development.

        We also spent a lot of time understanding why screening outside of a GP surgery hadn’t scaled effectively. We realised that if we could create a digital-first technology that delivered equivalent clinical value and interoperability as the NHS System gets from GP-led screening, we would be able to unlock community, workplace, and home screening for three of the largest cost centres for any healthcare system.

        The other major obstacle has been keeping up with demand for the Healthy Heart Check - which is a good problem to have!


        What’s been your innovator journey highlight?

        There are highlights at every stage. Introducing our Healthy Heart Check to market was huge, as was creating an amazing team across several specialties that can deliver for our customers, day in and day out.

        Building relationships with the teams at Health Innovation North East and North Cumbria and NHS North East and North Cumbria, who were the first to roll us out as part of an Small Business Research Initiative (SBRI) funded project.

        Seeing people use the Healthy Heart Check in every UK region is fantastic! It’s always nice to receive patients' and clinicians' feedback, showing we are having a real impact on our overall mission of helping identify people at risk of chronic illnesses earlier, so we can treat and/or prevent their condition, before it develops.

        A major highlight of my innovator journey to date has been reading the results of our Health Economic Analysis, co-authored with the NHS. It shows the huge economic benefits of using PocDoc.


        What is the best part of your job now?

        The most rewarding aspect of my role is witnessing the positive impact the Healthy Heart Check has on patients' lives. It is incredibly fulfilling to see how many high-risk individuals we’ve been able to reach - many of whom were previously unaware of their underlying health conditions.

        Through these checks, we’ve empowered individuals to take proactive steps in managing their health, which is a truly powerful outcome. The testimonials we receive reflect the value of our work, highlighting the tangible difference we are making. They not only validate our efforts but also serve as a constant source of motivation for both me and my dedicated team, many of whom have been personally affected by CVD. This personal connection fuels our collective drive to ensure the business's success.

        As we continue to expand, our goal is to make these life-changing, accessible health checks available to even more people, helping to prevent heart-related issues before they arise and improving overall public health on a larger scale.


        If you were in charge of the NHS and care system, what’s the one thing you’d do to speed up health innovation?

        I’d like to see a stronger collaboration between the NHS, its clinicians, innovators, and the investors who fund them - whether at the early, mid, or later stages of venture capital. We’ve been very lucky to have had such success in raising capital, and our investors are deeply aware of both the value and the challenges of the UK healthcare system.

        More broadly, there is a growing lack of understanding from institutional investors about how the NHS works and what types of business can succeed. What investors don’t understand, they view as risk, and what they view as risky, they won’t fund.

        The NHS is also frustrated that businesses are building products and technology that, while “innovative”, don’t solve clinical problems in their entirety or are no better than the incumbent process. In this situation, the NHS won’t adopt these solutions.

        There needs to be a recognition that this is a symbiotic relationship - if investors know what the single largest customer in the UK will buy, they can adjust their decisions accordingly. If the NHS can guide investments into innovations it knows will scale, adoption will go much faster.


        A typical day for you would include…

        I’m an early riser - usually up between 4am and 5am - driven by excitement for what we’re doing and the huge amount we must deliver in 2025. The first two hours of my day are focused on tasks that require deep concentration. However, if I’m training for a sporting event, I might split that time by doing an hour of focused work followed by an hour at the gym. Then it’s breakfast with my three children before getting them off to school and nursery.

        Mornings are spent catching up with my key team leads - Commercial, Marketing, Operations, Tech/Product, and R&D - while afternoons are dedicated to meetings with major clients, both existing and potential. Once a week, I sleep on a camp bed in the HQ factory, working late with the night shift operations team and then having breakfast with the early shift team. Every other Tuesday, I host my live show, HealthTech Hour, which now has 300,000 streams a month. I like to be well-prepared for it! I work until 6pm, then unwind with some exercise. 

        Right now, I’m really into jujitsu - I’m a white belt, and my goal for 2025 is to get close to blue.

        You can find PocDoc on their website, and on LinkedIn.

        Reclassifying obesity in the UK: the importance of language around weight management

        Published and last updated by Ana Grilo

        Are people obese or do they have obesity? Here Dr Rishi Das-Gupta, CEO at the Health Innovation Network (HIN) South London and Kerry Beadling-Barron, Director of Communications and Corporate Affairs explain why the language around weight management matters.

        Obesity is not currently classified as a disease in the UK. Why is this significant? Because it allows obesity to be viewed as a behavior that individuals could change but choose not to, placing the emphasis on personal responsibility (such as eating differently or exercising more) rather than on external factors. These include: genetic predispositions; the availability of fresh versus processed food; access to green spaces; or financial constraints that make gym memberships and exercise classes unattainable. A parallel can be drawn with the discussion around cigarette use – do we see individuals as smokers or as nicotine addicts? When considering this, does it change your view of those who smoke?

        Plus how we measure whether someone is obese is problematic. The Body Mass Index (BMI) which uses your height and weight to calculate how underweight or overweight you are is the tool of classification in the UK. However, it does not take account of where in the body fat is stored; the type of fat (white or brown); or weight of muscle mass, often leading to a simplistic outcome. For example, using this tool means most rugby players would be classed as obese because of their high muscle mass.

        In America obesity was labelled as a disease in 2013 to recognise the impact on overall public health, potentially increasing funding into research and reduce the stigma attached.

        And it’s important to recognise there is a stigma. We have recently been awarded funding from the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) to undertake a three-year study to determine the clinical and cost-effectiveness and implementation of a digitally enabled tier 3 weight management platform in south-east London. As part of this application, we included views from patient and public representatives where they were clear about the emotional impact of obesity.

        We also know by talking to partners that others are looking to test digital care in weight management, and of course, there is the increase in new GLP-1 weight loss drugs (such as Ozempic). The MHRA approved the use of semaglutide (Wegovy) for the treatment of obesity and weight management, and the NHS is already seeing a surge in people contacting clinicians for what was once a treatment for type 2 diabetes only.

        In our view, not classing obesity as a disease - keeping the focus at an individual level - harms our ability as a system to look at the overarching factors which make people obese and leaves individuals open to abuse. We welcome the discussion on how obesity should be reclassified at this crucial point, and our role in how digital innovation and pathway redesign can help.

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        Meet the Innovator: Nitin Parekh

        Published by Ana Grilo
        Head and shoulders photo of CEO Nitin Parekh

        In this edition, we catch up with Nitin Parekh, CEO at YOURmeds. This medication management solution uses the latest technology and mobile communication to prompt patients to take medicines correctly - and alert their carers if a dose has been missed, or the wrong medication has been taken.

        Current job role: CEO

        Name of innovation: YOURmeds


        Tell us about your innovation in a sentence.

        YOURmeds helps people to take the right medication at the right time with support from their network of family and friends improving health outcomes whilst reducing costs for primary and secondary care.


        What was the ‘lightbulb’ moment?

        When I realised my mother needed help, and I was 274 miles away! My mum was a type 2 diabetic, had high blood pressure and early-onset dementia. My father tried to support her but had an active life, so technology was the only viable answer.

        The idea of a smart blister pack came to me when I saw my mum trying to manage a standard dosette box from Boots. I marveled at the random opening of the tabs and thinking ‘there has to be a better way, so that I know what she is taking!’ My mum was my first real world case study.

        The World Health Organisation and NHS widely recognise that only 50% of people take their medication as intended. I realised that this was a global problem - if addressed, it could lead to a positive impact on people’s long term health and wellbeing.


        What three pieces of advice would you give budding innovators?

        1. Test the market for your product thoroughly. An innovation can work at many levels, but most are in reality either extremely narrow, or simply not scalable. Those that work best are the ones which 'add a few grains of sand to the beach', rather than 'inventing a new beach’.

        2. Be patient. Adoption in healthcare will take a lot longer than you expect. There are too many vested interests that will not accept your invention; remember that if you are being disruptive, you are also disrupting peoples’ pre-conceptions.

        3. To help your business stay solvent, look outside of the UK. Innovating in healthcare costs a lot of money, and most of that is spent on trying to stay solvent until you get traction.


        What’s been your toughest obstacle?

        Being a political football between the NHS and social care. In 2022/23 the NHS spent £10.4 billion on medicines in the community but it does not see medication adherence as a priority.  Adult social care recognises that getting people to take their medication has an impact on how much long-term care they would need in the future, but the Care Act only allows care to be commissioned if a person requires support with two or more daily living tasks (e.g. eating properly, going to the toilet). Therefore, someone requiring only medication support will often have 4 visits from a carer per day, with a requirement that support for personal care is provided to justify these visits. Without providing a means to improve medication independence, it is very difficult to reduce the number of visits a carer needs to make. If the medication piece was supported with a digital technology as soon as they become known to adult social care, as is done in Stoke-on-Trent City Council, the data collected can be used to evidence a care call when the service user can no longer manage their medication.

        Our biggest problem is the lack of joined up thinking between health and social care and too many people sitting in silos, worried about their own budgets and unable to see the bigger picture. With a growing elderly population, the NHS and adult social care need to work smarter. Digital technology is the way to increase capacity in the system, whilst increasing the independence and health outcomes of patients and/or service users.


        What’s been your innovator journey highlight?

        Our first adult social care client, Manchester City Council, taking us on. From there we have been really lucky to work with some forward thinking adult social care teams in Stoke-on-Trent City Council; Bridgend Council; and the Cwm Taf University Health Board. Recently we’ve managed to join up the conversation with some councils and ICS’s in South Yorkshire with Sheffield City Council and Bristol, that has given us hope that a joined up conversation around adherence is finally gaining traction.


        What is the best part of your job now?

        Seeing how the technology impacts the service users. With a little bit of support around adherence, our service users talk about how it’s helped them to feel better; manage their long-term condition; become more independent; and reduce the burden on the primary carer.


        If you were in charge of the NHS and care system, what’s the one thing you’d do to speed up health innovation?

        Work together, remove silos, and stop re-inventing the wheel. Every large organisation needs to agree a clear strategy that involves putting people at the centre. In our area, it would be really easy to identify the 20% of people who cost the NHS 80% of spend, let’s give them a digital medication adherence system based on their need, and then use the adherence data to understand what impact the medication taken is having on their long-term conditions.

        Our phase 2 project in Bridgend City Council and Cwm Taf Morgannwg University Health Board has been funded by the SBRI, and we’ve done some development work to bring the medication information into the reporting dashboard. So, for the first time, clinicians will know what medication was taken in each round and how to advise around missed or wrongly taken medication.

        We also need a hard look at systems and processes across all the health and social care landscape. Often, the only way social care teams, GPs, and pharmacies know someone has gone into hospital is due to the non-adherence on the YOURmeds systems. Trying to get data sharing agreements between health and social care is a major challenge.


        A typical day for you would include…

        Walking the family dog, Dylon, in the morning before I get to work!

        Everyday is different but generally includes: fundraising, product development, capturing our “user gold” from service users on how the technology supports them on a daily basis, and developing our team. Recently we’ve been doing a lot of development work with the SBRI bid - so lots of catching up with the IT team.  

        You can find YOURmeds on its website and LinkedIn.

        Caregivers and digital health: Bridging the gap in access and usability

        Published and last updated by Ana Grilo
        Two elders utilising a laptop and a mobile device.

        HIN Project Support Officer, You Tae Jeon, writes about the stand-out theme at the multi-day HETT conference this year: the inclusion of caregivers in the development of digital tools and innovations.

        Caregivers are people who help others with their health needs. They are a growing but sometimes hidden group – every year 4.3 million people become unpaid carers in the UK.  

        With up to three out of four Londoners using digital tools to interact with GPs, apps and websites are increasingly becoming important tools for helping people to manage their health, or to manage the health of others in the case of caregivers. Unfortunately, digital exclusion is a significant issue faced by carers. A significant proportion of carers are older adults, who are more likely to have trouble accessing digital tools due to not having access to internet at home or not having the digital skills to use these tools effectively. However, an issue for carers that do have access to these tools, is that they aren’t always designed with caregivers in mind, which can make it hard for them to use services and access the information they need.

        Why digital tools can be hard for caregivers

        One of the main problems is that digital tools in healthcare are mostly designed for patients, not caregivers. Caregivers play a big role in managing health tasks like appointments, reminders, and understanding treatment plans. By not providing easy access to allow caregivers to use these tools, we effectively make the patient digitally excluded. 

        More generally issues with user experience design (which may also impact caregivers negatively) includes information being hidden behind complicated menus, and difficulty understanding technical language. Caregivers often feel left out, frustrated, and unable to find what they need quickly. 

        Another big issue contributing to digital exclusion is confidence. Some caregivers, especially older ones, may not be very familiar with smartphones or computers – this can make using apps or websites difficult. When digital tools aren’t designed with these challenges in mind, caregivers struggle to understand and use them efficiently. 

        How to make digital tools easier for caregivers 

        • Listening to caregivers’ feedback: According to a Medisafe survey for caregivers, 80% of respondents reported using digital health tools to manage information with physicians and monitoring medications. Whether it is booking GP appointments via their website, or remote patient monitoring via a smartwatch, involving caregivers in the design stage of these digital tools is important. This means asking them what features they need, what confuses them, and how the tool could work better. By understanding caregivers' needs, designers can make tools that are more user-friendly and helpful. Involving caregivers in the process of creating and testing new tools could significantly impact the future usefulness of these tools, a process we refer to as “user experience design” (often referred to as “user centred design”) for healthcare.

        • Making the NHS work for everyone: The NHS is the main healthcare provider for everyone in the UK. This is unlike some other countries where people might have several different healthcare provider options to choose from. The NHS setup is a helpful one because it means there’s just one main system to improve. However, it also means that integration and usability are more important, as one system needs to be designed to work well for everyone across every part of the population. While there is a wealth of data collected on patients and their caregivers, research has shown that there are significant issues with the quality of data being collected. Therefore, we should develop localised datasets in collaboration with local communities, while ensuring that all caregivers—regardless of age, background, or familiarity with technology—can use NHS tools easily and without confusion. 

        • Simplifying tools: Many healthcare apps are too complex. Simplifying these tools means making them easy to use, with clear instructions and less confusing options. By doing so, it would help caregivers to find important information more easily. Making the language easier to understand is also part of simplifying these tools. Healthcare specialist terms can be hard to understand, so using simpler words and providing definitions would make digital tools more accessible for everyone. 

        • Using local languages: A recent report by The Digital Poverty Alliance suggests that inadequate language support is a key barrier faced in global majority communities. In the NHS, for example, messages are often sent in English. Caregivers who don’t speak English as their first language may struggle to understand important notifications. Having the option to send these messages in multiple languages would help make sure that everyone can understand and respond to them, which could be especially helpful in diverse communities where unpaid caring is often more common.

        Why these changes matter 

        Caregivers are important figures in healthcare – they help patients with everything from managing appointments, to understanding what treatments are needed. When digital tools are easier to use, caregivers can get the information they need quickly and provide better support. By making digital tools more accessible, we can help caregivers feel confident and empowered, which also benefits the people they are caring for.  

        With the NHS being the sole healthcare system for the entirety of the UK, it was acknowledged how much of a challenge it can be to make improvements that accommodate every person. Caregivers are increasingly becoming a demographic who urgently need greater involvement in how digital services are delivered.

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