Funding for Scientific & Technological Health Projects
More than £6 million will be invested as part of the Accelerated National Innovations Adoption (ANIA) programme to help people with type 2 Diabetes, stroke patients and babies born with a rare genetic condition.
A national digital intensive weight management programme will support 3,000 people recently diagnosed with type 2 diabetes. With £4.5 million invested over three years the project is expected to help around 40% to achieve remission from the condition by the end of their first year in the programme.
Two additional projects will look at pharmacogenetics – how a person’s genetics affect their response to certain drugs.
A total of £1.1 million will support testing of recent stroke patients to determine if they have a genetic variation that impairs the benefits of a drug commonly prescribed to reduce the risk of secondary stroke and which would mean an alternative drug should be considered for them.
This programme builds on a successful trial in NHS Tayside, will begin in October, and will be rolled out to all Territorial Boards within 12 months. Once fully implemented, the programme will test around 60,000 patients over a three-year period, with an estimated 20,000 given a different drug which will work for them.
A programme to provide a genetic test for newborn babies will also receive £800,000 funding to determine if they have a genetic variation which puts them at risk of permanent hearing loss if they are treated with a common emergency antibiotic.
In January the First Minister laid out our vision for Scotland’s NHS with digital innovation being a crucial part of our plans to reform health services. So I am pleased to announce funding for these projects which demonstrate the transformative potential of scientific and technological innovation to improve health and social care.
HEALTH SECRETARY NEIL GRAY
These projects have life changing effects for those who will benefit from them, resulting in improved health outcomes and a better quality of life.
Innovation is transforming healthcare and delivering medical benefits for the people of Scotland and the NHS, which will see reduced pressures as a direct result of projects just like these.
Health Secretary @neilcgray has announced over £6m for innovative health projects to help people with type 2 Diabetes, stroke patients and babies born with a rare genetic condition. Read more https://t.co/BuQM4k06Nk pic.twitter.com/0ADSEQqTPY
— Scot Gov Health (@scotgovhealth) March 13, 2025
Patients expect to be prescribed the most effective and safe medicines available. Testing for common genetic variation using advanced genomic technologies makes it increasingly feasible for doctors to choose the optimum medicine for individual patients.
DR ALEX DONEY, HONORARY NHS CONSULTANT PHYSICIAN – NHS TAYSIDE & UNIVERSITY OF DUNDEE
The initiatives announced today are welcome news and this will help pave the way for realisation of broader future patient benefits of genomic technology in the NHS.
Background
The Accelerated National Innovation Adoption pathway is coordinated by the national Centre for Sustainable Delivery at NHS Golden Jubilee and draws on expertise from NHS National Services Scotland, Healthcare Improvement Scotland, Public Health Scotland and NHS Education for Scotland. It introduces proven medical innovations into the NHS to improve healthcare.
The Type 2 Diabetes remission programme involves diet replacements such as soups, shakes or bars containing around 900 calories a day for the first 12 weeks. Participants will then receive intensive online support from dietitians, health and well-being coaches as they reintroduce healthy, nutritious food to their diet to maintain weight loss over the 12 month programme. 3,000 patients will be supported over three years. The majority will benefit from an average 10% weight loss and reduction in blood pressure. All of which reduce the risk of heart disease and the need for patients to take multiple medications. The first patients will be recruited into this programme in January 2026.
Building on a successful trial at Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust, newborn babies will receive a point of care genetic test to quickly establish whether they are one of the 0.2% at risk of permanent hearing loss if they are treated with a common emergency antibiotic. This programme will begin in October and be rolled out to all Territorial Boards within 18 months. Once fully adopted over 3,000 newborn babies a year will be tested, with those that require an alternative antibiotic receiving it.
