MEDILINK - 20 YEARS OF
TRANSFORMING HEALTHCARE
The old cliché ‘where has the time
gone’, springs to mind at moments
like this.
I go back with Medilink some twenty five
years, when I had darker hair, glasses
that resembled those worn by Brains in
Thunderbirds and two small children,
the first of which has just made me a
Grandad (or Papa as I am called - it
doesn’t hurt my pride as much!).
The journey from a small local project
initially funded by a local TEC &
European funding, to licensing the
Medilink model to other regions, and
then onto forming a national body,
Medilink UK, the largest industry
representative body for the Life
Science sector in the UK, has been a
challenging but immensely fulfilling
one. And yet looking back to the ethos
on which Medilink was born, bringing
together the ABCs (Academics,
Businesses & Clinicians) in formal
regional partnerships to drive economic
growth and improve patient care, is as
important now as it was then.
That said, Medilink is barely
recognisable from its initial form,
no longer reliant on European
funding and hosted by universities
(the Universities of Sheffield, Leeds,
Bradford and Hull in the first instance)
but independent, achieving self-
sustainability and delivering networked
membership support (web sites,
newsletters, e-bulletins, events /
conferences and awards) through
to commercial contracts with Life
Science organisations and Government
agencies.
Our resilience over the last twenty
five years (the last twenty as a
limited company), has I believe, been
down to Medilink’s receptivity to the
changing needs of members and to
the constantly changing healthcare
delivery and business support
infrastructure. We have extended our
membership base from MedTech to
embrace, BioTech and Pharma, as the
technologies between these respective
industries have converged, and more
recently we have embraced Digital
Health as this becomes the major
vehicle for transforming how health
and social care is delivered.
Medilink’s regional infrastructure has
allowed us to embrace the development
of Local Enterprise Partnerships &
Business Growth Hubs, maximising
opportunities for the Life Science
sector. And our Medilink offices in
Yorkshire & Humber, the North West
and the North East, have provided for a
new and exciting level of cross regional
interaction, with the Medilink North
of England network becoming proud
founding members of the Northern
Powerhouse.
A special word of thanks to Doug
Liversidge, CBE, our founding Chairman
who provided inspiration and support in
the early formative stages of Medilink and
to Dr. Gareth Lloyd Jones who took over as
Chair in 2006, and has been a guiding light
since this time. But perhaps the biggest
thank you of all goes to our individual
members, and Medilink team members,
who have been an absolute delight to work
with – without your continued support,
encouragement, and in many
cases friendship, this
extremely enjoyable
journey would not have
been possible. Here’s to
the next 20 years!
Please use #Medilink20
and @MedilinkYH
@MedilinkNW to show
your support for
Medilink in our
20th year.
Kevin Keily
Chief Executive
Medilink
BOOSTING GROWTH ACROSS THE NORTH
JAKE BERRY MP - MINISTER FOR THE NORTHERN POWERHOUSE
The Northern Powerhouse is our long
term plan to boost growth across
the North. It is comprehensive, from
tackling inequality in our education
system to strengthening trade
and investment, and, importantly,
supporting science and innovation.
Health Innovation is a prime growth
opportunity for the region, which has
a wealth of expertise and assets in this field. The North is
home to 20 universities and research institutions, and we
must support them if we’re going to create a sustainable
economy for the future.
Across the region, we’ve made significant investments so far
including a £20 million boost to Health North and investing
£14 million at the Advanced Wellbeing Research Centre in
Sheffield. From awarding £20 million for a Manchester &
Cheshire Life Sciences Fund to supporting the Accelerator
Building, a life science hub in Liverpool city centre, we’ve
demonstrated our firm commitment.
On my first ministerial visit since taking on the role of
Northern Powerhouse Minister, I chose to see the STEM
Laboratories at the University of Cumbria, which has been
backed by more than three quarters of a million pounds of
government funding. I was impressed by how these bespoke
teaching and research facilities have been created in direct
response to the increased need for biosciences graduates
in Cumbria and across the North, reflecting an increase in
demand from Sellafield and other businesses for analytical
scientists.
These type of projects are crucial to the success of the
Northern Powerhouse. They’re making sure we’re giving
people the skills they need to thrive in a flourishing industry.
Now, we’re turning to our Northern Powerhouse Partners
to help reinforce our work in the sector. We’ll build on
progress to date to encourage a thriving private sector
and train highly-skilled workers who can make the most of
the opportunities on offer. I look forward to working with
Medilink to advance this work even further.
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