The AMR Diagnostics team at the Office of the CSO carried out a series of horizon scans with the NIHR Innovation Observatory earlier in the year. These covered several major infection diagnostic pathways (UTI, RTI, sepsis and SSI) and examined potential innovations across the development spectrum from proof of concept through to CE-marked tests already available on the market.
Concurrently, the AMR Diagnostics team undertook mapping of the infection diagnostic pathways to determine the points at which innovations were needed, along with discussion with clinical experts.
Together, these pieces of work demonstrated that there is a mismatch between the diagnostics innovations being developed and the clinical need within the NHS. There is also a lack of clarity about what scientific data and evidence are needed to support a diagnostic test being adopted and implemented within NHS settings and how that should be assessed. Health economic analyses of the potential impact of infection diagnostic innovations in pathways are also needed to support adoption and rollout.
There are therefore four key areas that need to be addressed:
- Demand Signalling to Industry
- Developing Target Product Profiles for Infection Diagnostics
- Evaluation Framework for Infection Diagnostics
- Supporting Adoption and Implementation
To address this, NHSE and Leeds NIHR hosted an Industry Demand Signalling Event. This meeting was the flagship event and the starting point for an ongoing dialogue between stakeholders.
BIVDA is part of the event organising team and supporting the programme with sponsorship to host the events, but also facilitated the attendance through our membership, shaped the agenda and amplified the objectives. We had Robert Annan and Jane Freeman speak about the event at our last Infectious Diseases Working Party.
The Moving Forward in Infection Diagnostics event on Tuesday, was an excellent opportunity to have open, honest and collegiate debate around the future of diagnostics in the field of AMR and infection. The opening address by Prof Sir Chris Whitty highlighted the importance of addressing this global health threat and was followed by a call to action by Prof Mark Wilcox. Representatives from industry, academia, NHS clinical and non-clinical teams, as well as representatives from various innovation groups, attended break-out sessions to review clinical pathways and highlight key areas for collaboration, diagnostics innovation and utilisation of existing diagnostics. Overall, the outcomes were extremely positive and the future programme of events, to continue strengthening dialogue and collaboration between all stakeholders in this critical area, are very welcome.
Many BIVDA members attended and represented our sector and special thanks to Charlotte Duncan, Chair of the BIVDA Infectious Diseases Working Party for representing BIVDA on the day and for taking part in a panel session to promote the views of members during this important meeting.
We will have commentary from Robert Annan later this month and will be starting the preparation for the second event shortly with the organising team. If you have any questions about this event or the next one, please contact helen@bivda.org.uk
