Supporting Irish Healthcare Innovation

An Enterprise Ireland and HSE partnership, the HIHI Knowledge Network, providing a portfolio of HIHI-developed material, digital programmes, resources, workshops and a formal education programme developed to support Irish healthcare innovators. Fortifying HIHI’s established idea verification, clinical validation and pilot studies.

The HIHI Knowledge Network will support innovators by providing a toolkit to assist them through the innovation pathway. It will also support an innovation culture within the health system through a suite of knowledge building resources and guidance for healthcare professionals. The four pillars of the HIHI Knowledge Network are:

HIHI Innovation Tools: Taking an idea for innovation through to a product used in healthcare systems is challenging and many innovators need support. HIHI Innovation Tools provide this in one space through easily understood, downloadable factsheets covering advice on areas such as regulations, IP, reimbursement, design standards.

HIHI Innovation Accelerators: The Knowledge Network offers programmes and workshops to upskill and positively impact the healthcare innovation environment, designed to accelerate both product development skills and health system change.
HIHI Innovation Publications: An accessible library of peer review publications of HIIH studies and HIHI research on pertinent health innovation subjects.

HIHI Innovation Qualification: The one-year Postgraduate Diploma in Healthcare Innovation is the only innovation course in the country that is clinician designed and actively recruits from both the frontline and health industry. Now entering its third year, graduates span policy, HSE, primary care, pharma and health tech.

HIHI National Director Dr Tanya Mulcahy said:

“In HIHI, we believe that Ireland can lead the way in providing innovative ideas and solutions that will directly benefit the Irish healthcare system and across the world. The HIHI Knowledge Network is an online resource providing access to product development tools, training programmes, workshops and expertise in a single location, building on the in-house expertise of HIHI and leveraging the innovation ecosystem in Ireland.

“It fortifies the work that we already do with health innovators on product and idea development from clinical connections, focus groups, usability, end-user assessments, right through to bespoke validation and pilot studies.”

HIHI Manager TCD Eimear Galvin said:

“Reflecting the HIHI government departments and unique HSE and Enterprise Ireland partnership, the HIHI Knowledge Network was designed with our two core users in mind – health sector and enterprise of health. The four pillars represent the primary areas of support. The programmes and content offered within these pillars will grow, adapt and update according to HIHI user needs.”

Prepared by Suzanna Hayek