Feedback inks neighbourhood diagnostics collaboration deal

Medical imaging and diagnostic technology specialist Feedback announced a collaboration agreement with an unnamed provider of primary care solutions on Thursday, to develop a novel ‘neighbourhood diagnostics solution’ aimed at streamlining NHS diagnostic pathways and reducing patient wait times.

The AIM-traded firm said the proposed solution would integrate its ‘Bleepa’ technology with the partner's existing systems to improve the efficiency of diagnostic referrals between primary care, community diagnostic centres (CDCs), and secondary care facilities.

It said the approach was expected to enable certain diagnostic procedures to be conducted in community settings such as pharmacies or dedicated diagnostic facilities, increasing diagnostic capacity and supporting NHS efforts to reduce waitlist backlogs.

The collaboration would launch with a pilot programme designed to demonstrate the solution’s effectiveness in reducing outpatient appointment requirements and optimising the GP referral process.

Initial discussions with potential customer sites were already in progress.

The board said the pilot aimed to showcase the platform's ability to reduce patient wait times, enhance the referral process, and scale efficiently across multiple GP practices.

If successful, the collaboration had the potential to significantly expand the reach of the Bleepa solution and create additional diagnostic capacity within the NHS.

The company estimated that over 190 million diagnostic tests per year could be redirected to community settings such as pharmacies, representing an estimated total addressable market of £382m annually.

There were also prospects for international expansion, depending on the outcomes of the pilot and subsequent commercial agreements.

“This collaboration aligns to the secretary of state's vision to move care out of traditional acute provider settings and into the community, closer to patients,” said chief executive officer Dr Tom Oakley.

“If successful it will provide additional capacity to the NHS and help to overcome some of the difficulties being faced by CDCs, such as recruitment challenges, by enabling redirection to fully staffed facilities.”

Dr Oakley said it would also offer patients the choice and the convenience of attending their local high street for routine NHS investigations, with what the company believed would be shorter wait times.”

“Lord Darzi's paper, released on 12 September, calls directly for this solution.

“Given the impact that the combined product can deliver and the ability to leverage our partners existing footprint to scale the solution the company believes that we have a huge opportunity to support the new model of the NHS under the new Labour administration.”

At 1142 BST, shares in Feedback were up 5.26% at 50p.

Reporting by Josh White for Sharecast.com.