The ‘Shaping Digital Health & Social Care Innovation Challenge’ will encourage small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) to develop solutions enabled by 5G to meet patient and care provider needs in a series of key areas including rural healthcare, personal homecare and safe patient data sharing.
Spearheaded by S5GConnect, S5GC’s series of 5G testbeds and innovation hubs across Scotland, the challenge will provide access to a private 5G network in Dumfries.
The winning companies will also get access to S5GConnect Dumfries, Dumfries & Galloway Health & Social Care, Scottish Care and CGI throughout the accelerator programme, with support also committed post programme to bring solutions to market.
Lara Moloney, head of S5GConnect, said: “Private 5G networks offer organisations a new way to deliver services, this innovation challenge focuses on how we can support independent living and care to ease the burden on the NHS and Care Providers.
“Collectively we are offering a real opportunity to businesses who can solve these difficult problems and that can be enhanced through advanced connectivity. This intensive programme will allow the acceleration of a business concept into a product that has the potential to transform how we care for people and change lives for the better.”
Dumfries was the location for the first S5GConnect hub with the project set to expand to five following the programme’s announcement that it is building two 5G innovation hubs in Aberdeen and Kilmarnock earlier this month.