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NHS England calls for routine assessment of the environmental impact of innovative technologies

The Innovation Ecosystem Programme: Accelerating NHS InnovationA major national review has recommended that the NHS needs to build capabilities in assessing the environmental impact of new technologies. The Innovation Ecosystem Programme, led by NHS England over the last 18 months and chaired by Roland Sinker CBE, was set up to establish how the NHS can adopt innovations more rapidly and consistently.  One of the programme’s four objectives was to improve NHS sustainability “by using resources more efficiently and managing environmental impact”.

The Centre for Sustainable Healthcare was commissioned to support the programme by producing a thought leadership report earlier in 2024 examining how environmental sustainability can be embedded in innovation processes in the UK.  We are pleased to see this reflected in NHS England’s final report, which include the recommendation below:

NHS England should develop a mandated equivalent of the Treasury ‘Green Book’ for business cases for innovation, to give consistency to the evidence requirements for adoption and procurement of innovations yet to be nationally assessed and recommended. This should align with NICE’s assessments of resource impact and include an approach to assessment of environmental and health inequalities impact of innovative technologies.

This is an important recommendation that could deliver significant benefits for patients and the environment, and we will continue to work with NHS England and NICE to support its implementation.