DASA seeks innovations to enhance veterans’ healthcare
The Defence and Security Accelerator (DASA) has launched a new Themed Competition called the Veterans’ Health Innovation Fund - on behalf of the Office for Veterans’ Affairs (Cabinet Office) - which seeks advanced tech and innovations that improve the techniques and pathways for meeting veterans’ physical and mental health needs.
Courtesy DASA
Outputs from this competition will improve UK capability to save and enhance lives through advancing technologies, interventions and treatments in health. This will enable better future commissioning of treatments.
Key dates and funding
Up to £2.7 million is available to fund multiple proposals for the Office for Veterans’ Affairs Health Innovation Fund, with up to £300,000 available per proposal.
The deadline to submit a proposal is midday 31st August 2022.
Driving innovation in veterans’ healthcare
The Office for Veterans’ Affairs (OVA) was awarded £5 million by the Chancellor of the Exchequer in the October 2021 Budget to drive innovation in veteran’s healthcare, to ensure that treatment is informed by the latest research and developments in clinical care.
While the UK has developed cutting-edge treatment and technologies to support former service personnel who are wounded, injured or sick, this competition seeks to build on existing successes, plug knowledge gaps and develop new research that will support veterans’ healthcare.
This will improve the UK’s ability to save lives through advancing technologies, interventions and treatments in health.
Challenge areas
Submitted proposals must address 1 or more of the following challenges areas:
Challenge 1: Digital, data and technology
This challenge area is aimed at harnessing the latest digital and technology capabilities to improve our understanding of veterans’ healthcare needs. Examples include:
- artificial intelligence
- virtual reality
- using data to predict long-term health outcomes
- using non-invasive technologies to treat veterans
Challenge 2: Surgical technology, bioengineering and rehabilitation with blast injuries
This challenge area is aimed at proposals that offer improvements in innovative surgical techniques, bioengineering and rehabilitation interventions to support veterans who have been subject to blast injuries. Examples include:
- regenerative engineering
- customised metabolic prosthetics
- intervention technologies for conditions, including mild traumatic brain injury
Challenge 3: Public Health, pain management, hearing loss and visual impairment
This challenge area looks into the impact of pain, hearing loss and visual impairment. DASA and the OVA are particularly interested in applications that offer to trial interventions and treatments to improve the health outcomes of veterans. This challenge area is also interested in bids that look at treatments for public health challenges faced by veterans.
Challenge 4: Initiatives to help identify and/or provide solutions to disparities in female veterans’ health and healthcare
This challenge area is interested in projects that could improve our understanding of female veterans’ health challenges, and what care pathways can be put in place to better support them. For example, proposals that look at addiction (including alcohol misuse) and other mental health conditions such as those that result from exposure to trauma.
Want to learn more about these challenge areas? Read the full competition document here
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Webinar: 18th July 2022
This webinar will provide more information on the challenge areas and how to submit a proposal. There will also be an opportunity to ask questions in the Q&A. If you would like to get involved, please register on the Eventbrite page.
Register for Webinar here
Submit a proposal
Do you have a solution or novel approach that may help our ability to drive innovation for veteran’s healthcare? Submit an idea and help DASA and OVA ensure veterans’ treatment is informed by the latest research and developments in clinical care.
Learn more and submit a proposal here
