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Clinical trials, research collaborations, new partnerships and sales are all outcomes from the Association of British HealthTech Industries (ABHI) work in Texas.

Last month, a cohort of British HealthTech companies and medical institutions took part in the tenth mission to the States to showcase medical devices, diagnostic software and digitally-enabled technologies.

Companies met with hospital system leaders, GPOs, distributors, clinical leaders and procurement teams across Dallas-Forth Worth, Houston and Austin. This included Chief Medical Directors and senior leadership teams from a range of hospital systems such as Baylor Scott and White Health, Parkland Memorial Hospital, HCA and Catholic Health Initiatives (CHI). They also had a productive session with the Medical Director and Human Health Performance Diporate at NASA – The National Aeronautics and Space Administration.

Another highlight of the week was the discussion panel at The Dell Medical School – Getting Innovation to Patients: Strengths and Opportunities of the UK Healthcare Market. The event, which featured a range of key UK figures from the healthcare sector, talked about innovative pathways, health systems and the delivery challenges in relation to both the UK and the US.

Commenting on the mission, Andrew Thelwell, Chief Commercial Officer, FirstKind said:

“This was a superbly organised visit to Texas, with plenty of very high calibre meetings with the major health related organisations in each city. As a direct result of this trip we have been able to engage with key clinicians in the areas we are targeting and are now moving forward at pace. The trip was an excellent and efficient use of time – we could not have engaged as many people as quickly as this without the relationships that the ABHI have already established.”

Over the last four years, ABHI missions to Texas have helped UK companies develop and strengthen partnerships across the State with organisations including academic, investor communities and professional service providers.

During this time, 16 companies have based themselves in the ABHI Innovation Hub at the Dell Medical School in Austin. This unique partnership gives companies a physical presence in Texas with direct links to Dell Med’s senior leaders and contacts, introductions to the region’s key players and ABHI’s year-round support. The partnership has led to over 20 research contracts underway and new business generated. Owing to the Hub’s success in its first year, its capacity has now doubled, allowing more UK companies to take advantage of its compelling offering.

Richard Stubbs, CEO of Yorkshire & Humber Academic Health Science Network, who also joined the recent mission said: “The UK has a rich pool of HealthTech companies, and the US is a key export market. I’m delighted to continue to support ABHI with its US accelerator programme and it’s great to see the successes that have been achieved in such a short time period.”

Speaking on ABHI’s US work, Dr. Guy Wood-Gush, CEO, Deontics, added: “We wouldn’t have got anywhere near as far without these gold-plated introductions.”