Innovation Manager Simon Bunting
Innovation Manager Simon Bunting

We know our staff are passionate about providing the very best care to our patients and are continually looking for ways to enhance patient and staff experience and transform cancer care.

If you’re a member of staff, patient, volunteer or student, we’d love to hear about your innovative ideas and innovation challenges that can help improve, grow and transform our services and make CCC the best place to work and receive care.

You can read the Innovation Strategy (2023-2025) here: Innovation Strategy: Innovation strategy : The Clatterbridge Cancer Centre.

You can read our latest Research and Innovation Department Annual Report here: R&I Research and Innovation Annual Report

Innovation is all about practical creativity, the art of making new ideas useful and creating value for patients and staff. The key to creating value is identifying challenges and problems, these ‘pain points’ serve as catalysts to spark new ideas and drive progress.

'Be Innovative' is a capture tool for patients and staff to submit their ideas, which can then be developed, provide opportunities to test and develop prototypes, and evaluate devices and processes in real life environments.

Ideas or challenges submitted through the scheme can include new, novel or unique uses of technology, diagnostic ideas, software that may not currently exist, or solutions that can be adopted from other hospitals or industries.

The three main types of NHS innovation include, new products, new processes and new services. Below are some previous examples of innovative ideas previously supported by CCC (Click on the links for more information):

We want to hear your ideas and challenges, it doesn’t matter how big or small the idea or challenge, the key requirement is that it adds value to patients and staff.

The initial step is to check the ‘Ideas submission’ flow chart here to confirm if Be Innovative is the correct place to submit my idea, as there are a number of different ways to capture projects / ideas at CCC.

Use our innovators checklist to check, does your idea:

  • Start with something novel, new or unique?
  • Provides problem solving solutions that bring added value?
  • Revolutionise the conventional approach in a positive and productive manner?
  • Ignites creativity and imagination to foster growth, enhance performance, or achieve ground breaking results?

If your idea meets the above criteria then please complete the Be Innovative online form here

There are some ideas that we are unable to support, including:

  • Requests for additional equipment for Standard of Care
  • Requests for additional staff for Standard of Care
  • Projects which are purely theoretical – it needs have a tangible output such as completely new pathway, product, service etc.

What can you do to help?

Please provide us with as much information about your idea or challenge as possible including:

  • Clear definition of the problem or challenge
  • Any current solutions that exist
  • Details of any research you have already undertaken
  • What are the key patient benefits (can be done by simple online searches).

Next steps?

Once you have completed the online form, the Innovation team will review your idea or challenge and advise you on the best way we can support you.

All successful ideas or challenges will be reviewed by the ‘Be Innovative’ panel who meet every month. Evaluation of each idea or challenge is based on a number of criteria including patient benefits, alignment with strategy, originality, feasibility, funding, and sustainability and clinical or executive sponsorship.

Throughout the process you will be kept up to date with your submission and provided with feedback whether the idea or challenge is accepted and supported or not currently suitable to be taken any further.

Still unsure about your idea or challenge?

Fancy chatting your idea or challenge through with someone? Need some more advice? Or do you simply require ‘Time to think’?

Please get in touch with the Innovation Manager by clicking here and arrange a video call or face to face meeting.

For more information about the process or to ask any innovation related questions then please feel free to contact the Innovation team at ccf-tr.innovation@nhs.net

Alternatively you can contact the Innovation Manager directly at simon.bunting2@nhs.net

Want to know about innovation or how you can grow your innovators mindset? We have a number of resources on the CCC Innovation intranet page to help you, these can be accessed here.