Investing in Innovation

The Charity is supporting the strong tradition of pioneering medical knowledge and technology at Guy's and St Thomas' by funding new innovations.

The £750,000 Guy’s and St Thomas’ Innovation Fund for Technology Transfer (GIFTT), developed in conjunction with the Medical Physics Department, focuses on ideas which are innovative and potentially ripe for commercial exploitation, in order to provide a return on investment for the Charity, the Trust and the inventor.

Support offered through GIFTT includes up to £50,000 per project as well as the necessary advice to take a concept from the drawing board to prototype stage, and then through the patenting process. GIFTT is open to all employees at Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust.

Applying for support

The initial area of focus for this fund will be to support those ideas and innovations which fit into the following areas:

• Medical devices
• Monitoring devices, including imaging
• Laboratory and clinical instrumentation
• Mechanical or electro-mechanical aids
• Assistive technologies including remote and tele-healthcare
• Software, software interfacing technologies
• Diagnostic tests and biomarkers
• Drug delivery

Drawing upon the support of Andrew Coleman and his team in Medical Physics and Terry Parlett, Intellectual Property Development Manager, Michael will work with the innovator to take their concept from the drawing board to prototype stage and to take the steps necessary to protect it.

Please use the guidelines below to find out more about the process and to download an application form. Before submitting an application you can contact Dr Michael Wright, Health Venture Fund Director, on Tel: 020 7188 6294 to discuss your idea and receive advice on completing an initial application form.

Eligibility criteria

Application process

Application guidelines

Expression of interest form

Application form

Applications are invited for the following deadlines in 2010, with expressions of interest welcome at any time:

• 2 July 2010
• 19 November 2010

Dr Michael Wright explains more: “We want people to come forward with ideas which could make an important change in diagnosing or treating patients. We’re hoping to identify the most exciting projects with the potential to transform medical practice across the country.”

Guy’s and St Thomas’ hospitals have over the centuries earned a reputation for pioneering medical knowledge and technology – the first hospital bleep was created in the 1950s by Peter Styles, an electronic engineer at St Thomas’, and more recently the Trust has pioneered the use of remote controlled robots in surgery.