Ifan Evans
Director - Technology, Digital & Transformation, Welsh Government

Barbara Coles
ACCELERATE Project Manager & Clinical Innovation Hub Manager, Cardiff University School of Medicine

Barbara is the Clinical Innovation Hub Manager and Accelerate Project Manager for the Clinical Innovation Accelerator (CIA), Cardiff University. She supports overall project management activities, strategic development and implementation for the Hub and project, providing the main link between Cardiff and the Accelerate partners. Barbara actively supports initiatives in the Clinical Innovation Partnership between Cardiff University and Cardiff and Vale Health Board as part of her roles, this a crucial pipeline for clinical innovation activities and projects.  Barbara has a wide science background including the electrophysiology of potassium channels in Alzheimer’s, nitric oxide in vasodilation and coagulation and inflammation (peritoneal and sepsis). As a PRINCE 2 practitioner, project management has included UTA Welcome awards and as the Outputs Administrator for Research Excellence Framework (REF), School of Medicine

Phil Webb
Associate Director of Planning, Performance and Innovation , Velindre NHS University Trust

James Kinsey-Jones
Business Development Manager, Cardiff University

Natalie De Mello
Senior Innovation Technologist, Swansea University

Ryan Bamsey
Head of Technology and Development, Innoture

Caroline Hagerman
Innovation Fellow - User Experience and Behavioural Science, University of Wales Trinity St David

Caroline is a scientist by training, with degrees in synthetic chemistry. She escaped the lab and moved to the world of innovation consulting, where she worked with major corporations to develop new concepts and technologies into successful breakthrough products.

Caroline worked on topics ranging from surgical staplers to fabric dyeing to pharmaceuticals to makeup, focusing on the chemistry that underpins the world around us. She also developed an interest in user interaction and behaviour, particularly as applied to healthcare and consumer choices.

Caroline has experience in design of behavioural/user studies, facilitation, workshops, client engagement and report writing. In her spare time, she runs a ceramics business – she creates useful objects which are unique and natural.

Dayne Hodgson
Director and Co-founder, RedKnight Consultancy Ltd

Dayne is an expert in small business funding programmes, including Horizon 2020, Innovate UK and European Structural and Investment Funding (ESIF), which he has also managed and administrated. With a First Class Honours Degree in management studies from Cardiff Met, he started his professional career working within the university’s Research and Enterprise Services, developing expertise in both National and International funding streams. In 2014, Dayne joined the University of Wales Trinity St David as European Strategy Development Officer, supporting the successful development of the £13m ESF work-based learning project, ‘GWLAD’ and two Erasmus+ Strategic Partnership projects worth more than €500k.

Gareth Gunter
COO, Red Dot 365

Over 20 years of understanding the social responsibilities and commercial outcomes needed in the world of Wellbeing.

Extensive experience in commercial sales and wellbeing provision.

Leader in social wellbeing, the goals, interests, barriers and concerns associated to people achieving their wellbeing goals.

Jennifer Walsh
Paediatric continence nurse specialist, Powys Teaching Health Board

Paediatric Continence Nurse Specialist and trainee Advanced Clinical Practitioner, completing 2^nd year of MSc. Currently establishing a new, integrated 0 -19 years Paediatric Continence Service in Powys Teaching Health Board, following the completion of a Bevan Commission Exemplar scoping project. Developing innovative E – Solution (App) in co-production with Bevan Commission and Aparito, seeking to improve children’s health-literacy regarding their bladder and bowel dysfunction and establishing enhanced concordance and self-efficacy. Finalist RCN Nurse of the Year 2017.

Jenna Bowen
Chief Operating Officer, Cotton Mouton Diagnostics

A Pharmacist by training, Jenna co-founded Cotton Mouton Diagnostics (CMD) in late 2014 to exploit a novel sensing platform that she and colleagues at Cardiff and Exeter Universities had developed. CMD’s first product, the aBET^TM system, offers a robust and sensitive solution for pyrogen testing in the pharmaceutical industry. Jenna was named one of Innovate UK’s Women in Innovation in 2017 and also holds an academic position at the School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences at Cardiff University.

John Williams
CEO, Red Dot 365

An executive in FTSE 100 organisations

International sports coach, coach educator and leader with experience in Europe, Asia and America.

Extensive experience in the competitive commercial world of outsourcing, supply chain management and consulting on large, complex, high value government contracts.

Greg Baily
Technical Director, Huntleigh Healthcare

Trevor Lewis
Director , Medical Device Consultancy

Trevor first worked in medical device quality assurance during 1980 and in 45 years of work experience has spent more than 30 years in the medical device industry, in a variety of roles. He founded the Medical Device Consultancy during 1995.

• Provides medical device and in vitro diagnostic companies with a diverse range of services from strategic research, business planning, regulatory affairs (EU & US), quality systems through to all kinds of business development issues and related training.
• Has provided training of national regulatory authorities and senior officials in European Union (EU) medical device directives, especially in India, China, Egypt and Turkey but also all MEDA countries on behalf of the European Commission.
• Has provided guidance and advice on medical regulation implementation to Canada, the Republic of Moldova, Hong Kong, China and India. This has included working with the European Commission and Chinese Government via BSI on the comparison of clinical evaluation in both jurisdictions to inform the European Commission (EC) and Chinese Food and Drug Administration (CFDA / NMPA) that is reflected in the published MEDDEV 2.7/2 rev2 Guidelines for Competent Authorities for making a validation/assessment of a clinical investigation application under directives 90/385/EEC and 93/42/EC (September 2015).
• Several previous clients, initially engaged with at the start-up stage, have grown and developed into successful businesses that have been sold and provided substantial returns for their founders and investors.

Huw Shurmer
Strategic Relationship Manager Medical Systems, Fujifilm

Donna Egbeare
Consultant in Oncoplastic Breast Surgery, Cardiff and Vale University Health Board

Glenn Hapgood
Commercial Director, Rescape

Glenn has worked within the media industry for over 12 years in various roles from creative to operations director.

In early 2017 Glenn joined the Orchard Media and Events Group to lead their Immersive Tech Department and quickly established them as a leader in this space.

Glenn led a focus move to healthcare within the Immersive Tech team and the Orchard group and has spearheaded over 40 projects within the healthcare space

In 2019 Glenn and the Chief Operating Officer of Orchard founded Rescape and its products are now being used in over 50 locations across the UK.

Elin Haf Davies
CEO, Aparito

Ian Bussey
Partner, Regent Assay Corporate Finance

Ian Bussey is a Partner at Regent Assay and a qualified Solicitor. He has a very wide range of corporate finance experience gained within the medical device and equipment space over the past 20 years. Ian has acted on both the sale and buy side and has specialised in cross border transactions.

Ian has worked on several fundraising engagements including:

Ian has completed numerous buy and sale   side assignments in the healthcare industry, ranging from oncology, ophthalmology OB-GYN to various medical devices and technologies. Clients he has worked with include: CooperVision (ophthalmology), CooperSurgical (medical devices), Pelican Healthcare (nutritional supplements), Luneau Technologies (ophthalmology), Rayner (medical devices) and Sifi (medical devices).

Ian has recently advised Medi Wales member DTR Medical on its sale to Innovia.

Gwyn Tudor
CEO, MediWales

As CEO of Mediwales for nearly 16 years, Gwyn has overseen a transformation of the forum to its current size, influence and corporate structure. Gwyn works with the directors and members of MediWales to develop the forum’s future strategic direction. His in-depth knowledge of the life science sector allows him to represent MediWales’ members’ interests on a number of Welsh and UK government panels and boards.

Gwyn’s career has developed over twenty years from being a front line product designer working in a number of sectors, including the development of medical devices, to his current managerial role.

Michael Graz
CEO & Founder, Biophys

I have 25 years of commercial, research and teaching experience in the life sciences. Over this period of time I have held senior management, advisory and technical consultancy roles in corporate and SME organisations and with clients who have included governmental and intergovernmental bodies. This has taken me to live on 4 continents and to work across 5. During this period, I have created, led, supported or turned-around blue biotech, API Manufacturers, Medical Device companies and a drug development organization in South America, South Africa and Wales, Wales and USA and Wales, respectively. These organisations have ranged from pre-revenue to companies with annual revenues of over £13 million.
For the past 10 years I have been active in the diagnostics and biotech sectors in South Wales and am currently developing a Life Sciences Incubator and acting Chief Scientific Officer in the development of transdermal delivery of drugs.
With 2 PhDs, numerous publications and joint inventorship on 7 patents in the field of microbial control and diagnostics, I have significant insight into the development of new medical technologies.

Adam Bryant
CEO, CanSense

Adam Bryant is the CEO of CanSense. Adam combines his business acumen with his passion for technology used within medicine to increase patient outcomes. Adam has over 20 years experience working as a Senior MD in investment banking in London tier1 institutions. Adam has spent his career creating and leading dynamic & highly sophisticated teams able to deliver. He holds a PhD in Theoretical Physics from UWCC and has presented at various Parliamentary APPG meetings on Fintech.

Roy Lilley
Health Policy Analyst, Writer, Broadcaster and Commentator on the National Health Service and Social Issues, NHSmanagers.net

Over 50 years ago Roy Lilley started his first enterprise from scratch, built it into a multi-million turn-over business and sold it to fellow directors and managers, in 1989.

He has chaired everything from major boards, to hospitals, health authorities, voluntary organisations and charities.

He has been a policy advisor, a visiting fellow at Imperial College London, helped start the Health services Management school at Nottingham University and was a founder of the Federation of NHS Trusts… that became the Confed.

In local government; for over 20 years a councillor, chaired all the major committees, became the leader of the Council and Mayor of Surrey Heath Borough Council.

He is the Founder of the Academy of Fabulous Stuff, the only free-to-access repository of best practice in the NHS, the developer of the Fab-O-Meter, a way for measuring morale in organisations, in real time, and for over ten years has written a discontinuous eLetter that, often, over three times a week, reaches the inboxes of 300,000 health and care managers in the UK and overseas.

He visits over 20 NHS establishments a year and travels the UK and world-wide talking about healthcare, management and policy.  Three times voted the top speaker on NHS topics.

He says; ‘Healthcare is my interest, my challenge, my passion and I am lucky to be involved with the professionals who make our lives healthier, our families safer and each of us proud of what we do.’

 

Simon Thelwall-Jones
Investment Director, Technology Venture Investments, Development Bank of Wales

Simon has worked in the venture capital/private equity industry since the early 1990s. During his career he has held both new investment and portfolio roles. He has been involved in corporate M&A, for both private and public companies, creating substantial value for SME/corporate stake holders.

He joined the Development Bank of Wales in 2019 as Director of Technology Ventures. The Development Bank of Wales’ technology team backs companies ranging from early-stage start-ups to more mature businesses that need funding to grow and build on their intellectual property foundations.

Simon holds a first class honours degree in Agricultural Business Management from the University of London. He qualified as an accountant with Coopers & Lybrand (now part of PWC), and is a Fellow of Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW). He also holds the ICAEW Corporate Finance Qualification.

Tony Sedgwick
CEO & Founder, Thought Disruptor

Tony is a life Science Strategist and Freelance Science /Business Professor .Originally  an academic pathologist ,part of the linage of Eli Metchnikoff. After a number of senior jobs in Research and development at Roche Tony became CEO of four Biotech companies and chairman of many. Following establishing the Pierre Fabre Fund for innovation the corporate venture firm ,Tony has developed his model of being a modern “Eminence Gris” helping CEO CSOs , entrepreneurs and inventors as a trusted advisor and helping their minds to work through strategy in a systematic way .Tony is an active systemic constellation psychotherapist ,thought disruptor and talent finder .He recently launched the Agile life science co creative workshop as a thought leadership series throughout the Uk and Europe.

Alan Sumner
Head of Public Affairs, Roche Diagnostics

Alan has spent over 30 years working within the healthcare industry. He has spent the last 10 years in Public Affairs, and therefore understands the importance that Health Policy can make in ensuring that patients and those that care for them, have access to the most appropriate diagnostic tests and treatments, throughout the U.K.  Born in Edinburgh, based in Roche Diagnostics UK office in West Sussex, he has a passion for the game of rugby and may draw some parallels of adopting innovation in the game as well as in health

Dafydd Loughran
CEO, Concentric Health

Concentric Health, led by Dr Dafydd Loughran and supported by Innovate UK funding are improving the consent process for patients, clinicians and organisations. Their mission is to transform how decisions are made about our health. Decisions informed by patient outcomes, and shared by patient and clinician. See the platform in action, and gain insights into deploying health technology software into trusts and health boards.

Sion Charles
Deputy Director, Bevan Commission

Lawson Coombes
Enterprise Europe Network Partner, Swansea University

Lawson specialises in commercialisation of innovation. For most of his career as an innovation specialist, Lawson supports companies to internationalise and increase their sustainability, funded by innovate UK and European Union. Lawson leads a team of innovation advisors who provides free support to SMEs.

Andrew Bonser
Director Government Affairs, UK & Ireland, Intuitive

Andrew is the UK and Ireland Government Affairs Director for Intuitive, responsible for engagement with senior policy makers in the NHS and UK and devolved Government. Prior to joining Intuitive he was the Director of Public Policy for Walgreens Boots Alliance and before that, the Director of European Government Affairs and Director of European Trade Policy for Pfizer Inc.

Innovate UK Speaker
, Innovate UK

Michael Branagan-Harris
CEO, Device Access

Since 1989, Michael Branagan-Harris, CEO of Device Access UK Ltd has been involved in accelerating patient access to great technology in the UK’s health care system – the National Health Service or NHS.

During his role in sales, he introduced the Lap Band for obesity, endovascular grafts, novel endo laparoscopic surgery devices and the DaVinci robot.

From 2006-2009 Michael ran VNUS Medical UK Ltd, a subsidiary of VNUS Inc San Jose California. Where he introduced VNUS Closure®, a novel minimally invasive treatment alternative to painful vein stripping surgery. Following his team’s efforts, VNUS Closure was showcased by The NHS Innovation Centre, leading to accelerated adoption and diffusion across the NHS and VNUS Medical was subsequently purchased by Covidien for over $500M

Today VNUS Closure has fully replaced traditional vein stripping surgery as the procedure of choice, saving the NHS over 50,000 valuable bed days a year.

Nine years ago, Michael incorporated Device Access UK and since then his team has helped hundreds of Medical Device and Diagnostic companies navigate their way into the NHS. Their clients range from small start-up to multinational from across the world.

In 2014, Device Access was granted a commercial licence from NHS Digital to access over 1 Billion NHS England patient health records. This data allows them to examine diagnosis, procedure and spend data, nationally and by each NHS Hospital in England, and in turn enables Device Access to see how their client’s technology could affect the current patient pathway, assist in building a value story with NICE and a solid business case for local and national NHS Hospital adoption.

In 2018 Device Access relocated to the University of Southampton Science Park, and today the team consists of specialists in NHS Change Management and dossier writing, real World Data Analytics, Health Economics and Outcomes research, fats track publication of economic evidence, and supporting clients for NICE HTA approvals. This work also involves close collaboration with the National Office for Clinical Research Infrastructure (NOCRI), the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) and the UK’s Department of international Trade (DIT)

To date, Device Access has helped over 30 companies navigate various NICE evaluation programmes for approval. More recently in March 2019 Device Access became part of the IGES Group of companies – www.iges.com

Chris Baines
Co-Founder & CTO, Forth

Rob Oultram
UK representative, Senso Medical (Israel) / Evolve Neurotech (Wales).

Having spent much of my early career studying and working between the UK, Italy and USA, my professional career started in engineering and software development. Since 2018, I have been working with Senso Medical, an innovative product development services company with HQ in Nazareth, Israel. SensoMedical’s experts have years of experience perfecting the development and commercialisation of neurotechnology. Developing devices in the neurotechnology space is a complex science that requires expertise in multiple fields including electrophysiology, biology, materials science, mechanical engineering, regulatory experience, etc.  SensoMedical is the first company focused entirely on products & technology for neurology and neurosciences. We are establishing an R&D office in South Wales where we offer a rapid pathway in the development & commercialisation of medical and wellness devices as society embarks on the next frontier in all things neuro.

Stephen Hildrew
Regional Director Partnerships, Siemens Healthineers

Prior to joining Siemens Healthineers, Stephen worked for 15 years in NHS management, with experience in senior leadership of a wide variety of hospital and community services in the Midlands. He has interests in transformation of health services, digital implementations and has a masters degree in leadership for health service improvement. At Siemens, he is responsible for cross-modality partnerships across Central England and Wales.

Speaker
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