Award winning idea goes national
28-MAY-09
Issued by: Jeanette Hedley
An innovative idea by a North Tyneside Council employee is supporting families and professionals nationally to tackle drugs problems.
The 'hiwecanhelp.com' website has been developed by Roweena Russell, Harm Reduction Strategy manager for the North Tyneside Drug Action team.
It was created to add a new dimension to both harm reduction and drug treatment by meeting a need for an effective online support community.
And it has now scooped a second prize in the Innovative Service Delivery Category of the NHS Innovation North annual awards.
"It was originally developed to provide innovative ways to reduce the harms caused by drugs in our communities," explained Roweena who has been working in the drugs field since 1995.
"I am delighted that hiwecanhelp was recognised by NHS Innovations. It is a great achievement for the whole team involved and excellent news for the growing number of hi members.
She added: "Working with the web team at TH-NK has been an excellent experience and the site has certainly delivered. The NHS Innovations team has been extremely supportive."
The website is a problem-solving resource that creates an online community for drug issues.
It has a dual role as it is a site where people affected by drug abuse can find help and information, but it also assists front line staff to share resources and best practices.
Meng Khaw, director of public health for North Tyneside Primary Care Trust said: "The impact of drug misuse is felt not just by drug users, but also by their families and the communities they live in.
"Reducing the harm caused by drug abuse requires partnership working between the local NHS, the local authority and the police. The Hiwecanhelp website is a great example of partnership working and North Tyneside PCT is delighted to be a part of this success."
NHS Innovations North is the innovation and intellectual property management service available to all NHS Trust in the North East of England and is delivered by RTC North on behalf of the NHS.
It acts as a broker between industry, academia and the health service to bring NHS employees' bright ideas to life, turning them into products and services that improve healthcare and generate revenue for both the NHS and its industrial partners.
It is one of the nine regional hubs across the NHS in England and is funded by the Department of Health, the Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills and is part financed by the European Union's European Regional Development Fund's Competitiveness Programme 2007-13, securing £800,000 investment through regional development agency One Northeast.
The team at NHS Innovations North have experience and expertise in prior art exploration, market research and the commercialisation process. This encompasses all aspects of NHS technology from identification of ideas through to appropriate protection and establishing licensing agreements.
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