The Highland Marketing advisory board has welcomed a new member - Dr Jason Broch, a GP and director with a strong track record in the NHS and IT-enabled transformation.
Dr Broch brings a wealth of experience to the board, which debates issues in digital health and advises the specialist health tech agency and its clients on policy, procurement and implementation.
He is a GP partner at the Oakwood Lane Medical Practice in Leeds and medical director and chief clinical innovation and information officer at Leeds Health and Care Partnership, which unites organisations from across the city to improve health and wellbeing.
"What drives me is trying to make the experience of the NHS better for staff and for patients," he says. "Most of what we do is communication, whether that is consulting with patients or with colleagues.
"Digital has a huge role to play in bringing together fragmented services, removing duplication during handovers, and improving the experience of care for patients. I'm also interested in using data for quality improvement and for population health management.
"And also in how we can be clear about what we are trying to achieve, collectively, and how we can deliver maximum value for patients with the resources available to us."
Dr Broch is joining the Highland Marketing advisory board at a difficult but potentially exciting inflexion point for health tech.
The NHS is facing huge demand and financial pressure, and the government has embarked on a rapid reorganisation of its central and commissioning bodies, which have important roles in delivering infrastructure, national systems, and data collection and analysis.
Yet the government is also committed to a shift from analogue to digital as part of its 10 Year Plan for Health, which will also seek to shift care from hospital to community, and from treatment to prevention.
Dr Broch says: "I am optimistic. Yes, we have had the pandemic, and there are questions about funding and capacity, and we need to address inequalities. But there are things that put us in a good position for the future.
"We have electronic health records in place, we have more data than ever before, so we can start measuring the things that really matter to people, and there is a lot of new technology coming on stream.
"There are still issues that we need to address around infrastructure, and integration, and taking people with us, but I think we are on the cusp of real change."
Highland Marketing is an established research, PR, marketing and sales acceleration agency with more than 20 years’ experience in digital health. Its advisory board is comprised of experts working in NHS health tech and leading suppliers.
"I think the best way to learn and to challenge yourself is to be part of conversations," Dr Broch adds. "When you look around the table, there are lots of people with different expertise, so being part of that feels like a huge opportunity."
Mark Venables, chief executive of Highland Marketing, said: "We are very pleased that Dr Broch has agreed to join our advisory board. Primary care is a critical sector of the NHS. It is also one that digitised early and has continued to innovate.
"That means it is vital that the primary care perspective is considered when further digital developments are being discussed, planned, and implemented.
"Dr Broch will bring that perspective to the advisory board’s discussions and provide vital insight for our clients, who work in all areas of health tech and med tech."
About the Highland Marketing advisory board
The Highland Marketing advisory board includes: Jeremy Nettle (chair), formerly of Oracle and techUK; Cindy Fedell, regional chief information officer at North western Ontario Hospitals, Canada; Nicola Haywood-Cleverly, a former integrated care system chief information officer, non-executive director for NHS foundation trusts, and health tech strategist and advisor; Andy Kinnear, former director of digital transformation at NHS South, Central and West Commissioning Support Unit and now consultant at Ethical Healthcare; Ravi Kumar, health tech entrepreneur and chair of ZANEC; Dr Rizwan Malik, consultant NHS radiologist and director of SMR Health Tech Consultancy; James Norman, EMEA health and life science director, Pure Storage; Ian Hogan, CIO at the Leeds and York Partnership NHS Foundation Trust; Neil Perry, former director of digital transformation at Dartford and Gravesham NHS Trust and now director at Synergy Digital Health Innovation; David Hancock, digital health strategist specialising in interoperability; Jane Brightman, director of workforce strategy at Skills for Care; Jason Broch, GP and CCIO at Leeds Health and Care Partnership.
About Highland Marketing
Highland Marketing is a specialist marketing, communications, market access and consultancy agency, focusing on the health tech and med tech industries. We offer an integrated range of services covering all elements of the marketing mix. These help organisations to achieve their goals by ensuring their messages are heard, understood, and acted upon by their chosen audiences.
Our highly experienced and well-connected team has deep knowledge of health and care technology, strong contacts in the industry, and is well-versed in delivering effective campaigns and content. We support clients across the NHS and EMEA healthcare markets. We also work with clients looking to expand from the UK into international markets, and with overseas companies looking to enter the UK market.