HMA has been selected as one of top ten Future Leaders by Creative England for its strategic approach, growth potential and innovative work in digital healthcare.
On Tuesday 20th January, Ceri Batchelder and Rob Hill joined the other nine Future Leaders at the OXO Tower, London for Creative England Live; an interactive showcase celebrating the country’s most innovate creative talents.
The event coincided with the launch of the Creative England 50 (CE50); a report highlighting individuals and SMEs from across England who have turned a creative idea into a commercial success.
As part of the report, a panel of creative industry judges selected ten Future Leaders, chosen for leading the charge for the creative industries, showcasing the best of what England’s regions have to offer and transforming the country’s economic future. The judges included Nicola Mendelsohn (Facebook), Saul Klein (Index Ventures), Rory Cellan-Jones (BBC), Rebecca Burn-Callander (Daily Telegraph) and Stuart Rock from the Business is Great government campaign.
Demonstrating innovative approaches that have the potential to improve the quality of life of the vulnerable and elderly, HMA collaborated with the Centre for Assistive Technology and Connected Healthcare (CATCH) at The University of Sheffield and Tunstall Healthcare, to develop mHealth Assist, a mobile platform for supported living. The concept is to help people with long-term conditions live more independently and is specifically focused on supporting vulnerable people living with dementia, visual impairment or needing solutions to resolve communication difficulties.
The project was a recipient of funding from Creative England’s NHS Digital Fund, with the goal of taking this new approach to improve quality of care into the NHS marketplace. The judges could see the impact a digital agency was bringing to the healthcare sector and were impressed with the idea behind mHealth Assist.
“We introduced the NHS Digital Fund in partnership with NHS England to help improve the health and wellbeing of patients using the very technology we have at our fingertips – mobile technology and app development,” explains Jim Farmery, Director of Business Investment at Creative England. “mHealth Assist is the perfect example of the creative and innovative technology that can be developed, with the right support.”
Rob Hill, Managing Director of HMA, said “We’re thrilled to be chosen as one of only ten Future Leaders. Creative England’s support has been key to accelerating our activities in digital healthcare and app development. It has strengthened our collaborative partnerships with academia and industry, and led to two healthcare innovation awards. In 2015, the HMA team aims to build on this success through delivering some high profile projects and expanding its innovation network.”
Other future leaders included Carbon Digital, Citrus Suite, Nomad Games, Shoothill, Skylab, Sun and Moon Studios, The Bureau, The Floow, and The Imaginarium.
Download the CE50 report here