Background

IXICO plc approached the NHSA to help with development of digital technologies to standardise data collection,  diagnosis and care pathway management  for people with Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI) and dementia. The company recognised that patients in different parts of the UK were often given very different information after they were diagnosed with dementia and that there could be significant benefit for patients, public health and research in standardising this care. They also recognised that the North of England had significant capacity and expertise for research and development in this field.

NHSA Support

Through working with the NHSA IXICO plc joined up with a consortium of leading NHS mental health trusts and university partners for a successful bid for £1.1m funding over three years from Innovate UK to create project Cygnus.

Cygnus is a new platform for using  standardized real world data collection in the care pathway post-diagnosis of dementia. It allows patients, researchers and carers to understand the diseases causing dementia, and the impact of individual patient outcomes on the patients themselves, their caregivers, the NHS and society. It therefore provides a path to innovation in methods for supporting and managing a patient MCI and dementia.

Results

Cygnus has the potential to improve the quality of life for sufferers and their family, by supporting patients with a diagnosis of mild dementia or MCI, making sure they have the best advice and tools for managing their own care, and also by collecting a rich source of data that can help develop better treatements and care in the future. All sites are initiated, the investigators are highly motivated and enrolment of participants is progressing well. After its initial trial in the North of England it is expected it will be rolled out across the UK. The NHSA acted as a single point of access to the relevant centres in the North of England for IXICO, facilitating initial engagement, coordinated interest and supported the funding application to Innovate UK.