New Royal Perth Hospital Innovation Hub to boost collaboration

A new innovation hub has officially opened at Royal Perth Hospital to help Western Australian clinicians connect, collaborate and innovate.

WA Medical Research Minister Stephen Dawson said the RPH Innovation Hub was another groundbreaking opportunity to link WA clinicians in a high-tech workspace to focus on improving health outcomes for Western Australians.

The RPH Innovation Hub offers dedicated spaces for 3D printing of high-fidelity prototypes, supported by biomedical engineering. The new facility embraces an emerging landscape of digital health care, allowing clinicians to explore virtual reality applications within health services in the new RPH Virtual Reality Lounge.

Other services offered at the RPH Innovation Hub include:  

• a comprehensive idea capture and management program underpinned by project management support to ensure staff with game-changing health ideas are supported to turn their ideas into a trial and then translate them into the new normal in WA hospitals; and
• a calendar of staff professional development and industry networking events that bring together the clinical expertise of the hospital with the problem-solving drivers in WA industry.  
   

With a central location off Wellington Street, the RPH Innovation Hub is designed to be easily accessible for clinicians, encouraging innovation as a core component of healthcare delivery in WA.

The project was influenced by leading US innovation hubs, including Stanford University in California, which strives to have a broad impact on scientific knowledge and health care worldwide.

Dawson said, "This facility will provide the tools, resources and support to transform groundbreaking ideas into reality, improving health outcomes for all Western Australians.

"A special feature of the RPH Innovation Hub is the new Maker's Space, which is equipped with 3D printing capabilities to support the development of early-stage prototypes of novel medical devices.

"This facility will be supported by an innovation technical lead who will act as an 'Engineer in Residence' and support the design and development of novel devices through a fractional appointment dedicated to the Hub Maker's Space."

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