Innovation in healthcare roundup: Hillbrow Health & Wellbeing, The Skin Health Alliance

The latest innovations in healthcare, including gym membership with GP access, skin diseases affecting renal transplant patients, a dedicated gastrointestinal clinical trials division, ambient voice technology and negative pressure wound therapy. 

Functional Gut Clinic launches clinical trials division

The Functional Gut Clinic (FGC), the UK’s leading provider of specialist gastrointestinal diagnostics, has launched its dedicated clinical trials division. 

The new division formalises and expands FGC’s long-standing research activity, positioning the organisation as a partner for pharmaceutical, biotech and microbiome companies developing next-generation therapies for conditions such as IBS, SIBO, reflux, motility disorders and functional gastrointestinal disease.

FGC enters the market with three advantages that set it apart from generalist contract research organisations. It has the UK’s largest volunteer bank for digestive-health research, with 5,000 opted-in individuals living with digestive health conditions; fast-track recruitment capability, demonstrated by completing ethics approval to full enrolment in under six months in recent studies; and diagnostic expertise, delivering more than 12,000 GI physiology tests each year and operating the only independent UKAS- accredited GI physiology service in the country. This means participants can be screened rapidly and with a level of clinical precision that significantly streamlines study start-up.

“At the Functional Gut Clinic, we have built the UK’s largest bank of opt-in volunteers with digestive conditions, and we combine this with unparalleled diagnostic capability. Launching our clinical trials division allows us to bring these strengths together to accelerate the development of new therapies and support companies working at the forefront of gut science,” said FGC founder Anthony Hobson. 

FGC has already delivered research programmes for leading global companies, including ADM Protexin (Bio-Kult), Reckitt Benckiser (Gaviscon), Medtronic and EnteroBiotix, supporting studies across probiotics, OTC medicines, medical devices and microbiome therapeutics. 

The UK’s first gym membership with GP access 

Hillbrow Health & Wellbeing in Eastbourne has launched the country’s first medical health club membership that brings fitness facilities and GP appointments together under one roof.

Created by Wave Active in partnership with South Downs Health and Care, GP Federation, this is intended to be a step forward in preventative healthcare. For the first time, clinical and leisure professionals are working side by side.

“Bringing clinical care and physical activity together under one roof is a major step forward for how we support people’s health,” said Nick Harvey, GP and chief executive of South Downs Health and Care. 

“Too much of healthcare still focuses on illness rather than prevention. MyHealth changes that by giving people easy access to high-quality medical advice alongside the facilities and support that help them stay well in the first place. Hillbrow was created to show what a truly integrated approach can look like, and this membership is another important milestone in making that vision real for our community,” he added. 

As part of the new membership, individuals receive up to six GP appointments each year, with the flexibility to transfer consultations to family members when needed.

Other membership benefits include full use of the Hillbrow gym, swimming pool and group fitness classes; a tailored fitness plan reviewed every 10–12 weeks, including two 45-minute sessions with a qualified fitness instructor; and an annual review with a nurse, followed by a consultation call with a GP.

The Skin Health Alliance donates £140,000 

The Skin Health Alliance has donated £140,000 to the British Skin Foundation to fund research into skin diseases affecting renal transplant patients. 

The accreditation body has been making donations to the British Skin Foundation for 13 years and has awarded more than £2.1 million so far.

Renal transplant patients are at higher risk of developing skin diseases and skin cancer due to the long-term use of immunosuppressive medication, taken to minimise the potential of the body rejecting the new kidney by lowering the immune system. As a result, its ability to effectively identify and fight abnormal cells is compromised.

This makes renal transplant patients particularly susceptible to skin cancer, as, alongside being less able to respond to viruses and bacteria, the immune system’s ability to repair skin damage caused by ultraviolet light is weakened, which can cause cells to become cancerous.

“Speaking from my own experience, I know how much trepidation is associated with having such invasive surgery,” said Matthew Patey, founder of Skin Health Alliance. 

“But due to the immunosuppressive medication other patients have to take long afterwards, nagging concerns surrounding our overall, and specifically skin health, don’t go away. 

In previous years, the Skin Health Alliance and British Skin Foundation have awarded grants for research into skin diseases that disproportionately or uniquely affect the skin of colour, and psychodermatology – exploring the link between mental and skin health. 

X-on Health and Tortus AI confirmed for ambient voice technology registry

X-on Health, a supplier of digital software for equal access to primary care, together with Tortus, have been confirmed as one of the first self-certified suppliers on the newly launched NHS England ambient voice technology registry.

Ambient voice technology enables real-time, automated clinical documentation during consultations, allowing clinicians to focus on patients rather than note-taking. The registry has been established to give healthcare organisations confidence in deploying ambient voice solutions that meet national standards for data protection, clinical safety, and information governance. 

“By working closely with Tortus, we’ve focused on practical deployment of [our AI-powered scribe] Surgery Intellect in real GP settings to provide approved and tested technology that genuinely reduces workload, integrates seamlessly with existing systems, and delivers immediate value to clinicians and patients alike,” said X-on Health managing director Julian Coe.  

“The creation of the NHS England ambient voice technology registry is a clear signal that ambient voice technology is moving into safe, scalable adoption across the NHS, and we’re proud to lead the way as a self-certified supplier,” he added. 

Solventum launches dressing in the UK 

US medical equipment manufacturer Solventum has launched its  VAC Peel and Place Dressing  to both NHS trusts and private facilities. It is an all-in-one solution for negative pressure wound therapy (NPWT). Designed to simplify application and improve patient comfort, the dressing can be applied in under two minutes and worn by patients for up to seven days. 

“We have instantly doubled our post-discharge wound NPWT clinic capacity by reducing individual clinic visits by half. The up-to-seven-day wear time enables us to see these patients only once per week, reducing inconvenience, disruption and cost to the patients,” said Mark Portou, consultant vascular surgeon at Royal Free London NHS Foundation Trust.  

The dressing design eliminates the need for separate foam and adhesive components, reducing application time and training requirements. It also features a non-adherent layer to minimise tissue ingrowth, making dressing changes less painful.