How a partnership between Leeds and Norway could help us all enjoy healthier lives - Greg Wright

So how do you ensure your citizens have the highest possible quality of life, without overwhelming public health systems which are already under intense strain? The sensible approach is to ask your neighbours how they are coping and see if you can work together to solve problems that could otherwise place an overwhelming burden on public resources.

The case for collaboration between nations was made when I chaired a debate at the Leeds-Norway health-tech summit, which was held at Nexus, a centre in Leeds that brings together the brightest minds from business, technology and academia. The summit, which was organised by Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust, is part of an initiative which aims to build a two-way flow of business between Yorkshire and Norway.

During the course of this discussion, it became clear that health professionals in Norway and Leeds – and the companies that serve them – have a lot more in common than you might imagine.

The participants, which included representatives from Sensio, a Norwegian care tech provider and Smart Crowding, a Norwegian health tech start up, had a common goal. They wanted to use technology to save lives by helping health professionals operate more efficiently. By establishing partnerships between technology companies based in Leeds and Norway, we could see more Britons enjoy healthier, happier lives.

Earlier this year, eight innovators from the Nordic nations were selected to bring health innovations to Yorkshire in a boot camp run by the Yorkshire & Humber Academic Health Science Network.

The boot camp aims to bring the best health innovations from around the world into the UK, with Yorkshire being the first to make use of them. Following the success of the inaugural boot camp in 2022, three of the five US companies who took part in the programme have gone on to establish a UK headquarters in Leeds.

Innovations coming into the region through the Nordic boot camp include a flexible sensor for those living with incontinence, time-saving software for medication processes and a product to manage patient flow and resource planning.

Barry Singleton, the business development officer at Nexus, hoped the latest event will have forged stronger ties between the Leeds City Region and the Nordic health systems which could lead to collaborations that reduce health inequalities.

He told me afterwards: “I hope we will see an increased flow of companies going in both directions to help drive innovation, economic growth, and knowledge exchange to benefit citizens, students, clinicians, and our populations. We are already planning similar exchanges with Canada, India and Israel.”

By thinking globally, technology businesses in Yorkshire could play a noble and vital role in revolutionising healthcare across Europe.

Greg Wright is the deputy business editor of The Yorkshire Post