Latest news with #AndyHeron
BBC News
15-07-2025
- Health
- BBC News
Crewkerne Community Hospital 'could lose all inpatient beds'
There are worries a community hospital could lose all of its inpatient NHS Foundation Trust has said it is in the early stages of looking at whether Crewkerne Community Hospital could become a neighbourhood health said this would "provide a greater range of diagnostic services and treatments for local people".The BBC understands staff have been told there is a proposal to close all of the 20 inpatient beds there, as part of the changes. Staff have also been told about redeployment options and offered shifts shadowing roles at other resident Darren Gould, whose dad has been a patient at the hospital, said he was "shocked" by the Gould's father was admitted to Crewkerne Hospital for end-of-life care in December 2024."He was looked after by the staff, they sorted his medication out, gave him the best treatment they could, physiotherapy, got him out of bed and walking with a frame."His father is now living back in his own home "driving his car around, going on short walks and watching bowls"."I think without him coming back here [Crewkerne Hospital] he wouldn't be with us today," said Mr Gould. The BBC asked the NHS trust, which runs the hospital, about the possibility of bed closures. It did not respond to this specific Heron, chief operating officer for Somerset NHS Foundation Trust, said: "We want to talk to local people about the best mix of services at the hospital which we think is potentially ideally placed to become one of the new neighbourhood health centres envisaged in the NHS 10 Year Plan."These conversations are at an early stage and there will be an opportunity for local people to get involved. No decisions have been made."It comes after the trust confirmed last month it was in the "very early" stages of a consultation to reduce beds at Frome Community Hospital and West Mendip Hospital in Glastonbury.
TimesLIVE
01-07-2025
- Business
- TimesLIVE
Nato fund backs biotech start-up in push to counter biological threats
The Nato Innovation Fund has made its first investment in a biotechnology company, it said on Monday, seeking to enhance defences against biological threats The fund is co-leading a $35m (R619m) fundraising round for Portal Biotech, which uses protein sequencing to detect engineered threats and defend against biological warfare. UK-based Portal Biotech's capability is essential for biosecurity defence and security, said Ana Bernardo-Gancedo, senior associate at the fund. 'We believe it is absolutely imperative that we are able to detect, monitor and create countermeasures,' she said. The fund, created in 2022 after the Russian invasion of Ukraine, plans to invest more than $1bn (R17.7bn) in technologies that would enhance Nato's defences. Portal Biotech uses an AI-backed technology with biological sensors that can work at the single molecule level on-site, providing results within hours. 'It's for everything from measuring diseases to better pandemic prevention. You can take this out of large labs with long turnaround times and into the field,' CEO Andy Heron told Reuters. Heron said the company's instruments can detect any pathogen and can be used for continuous monitoring of anything from a field to water supply. 'It allows you not only to detect what you did know was out there, but it allows you to detect what you didn't know,' he said. Beyond biosecurity, Portal Biotech expects its portable equipment to aid in drug discovery and precision medicine. The company's investors include Earlybird Venture Capital, Science Creates VC, Pillar VC, 8VC, We VC and British Business Bank.
Reuters
30-06-2025
- Business
- Reuters
NATO fund backs biotech startup in push to counter biological threats
STOCKHOLM, June 30 (Reuters) - The NATO Innovation Fund has made its first investment in a biotechnology company, it said on Monday, seeking to enhance defences against biological threats The fund is co-leading a $35 million fundraising round for Portal Biotech, which uses protein sequencing to detect engineered threats and defend against biological warfare. UK-based Portal Biotech's capability is essential for biosecurity defence and security, said Ana Bernardo-Gancedo, senior associate at NATO Innovation Fund. "We believe that it is absolutely imperative that we are able to detect, monitor and create countermeasures," she said. The fund, created in 2022 after the Russian invasion of Ukraine, plans to invest more than $1 billion in technologies that would enhance NATO's defences. Portal Biotech uses an AI-backed technology with biological sensors that can work at the single molecule level on-site, giving results within hours. "It's for everything from measuring diseases to better pandemic prevention ... you can take this out of large labs with long turnaround times and into the field," CEO Andy Heron told Reuters. Heron said the company's instruments can detect any pathogen and can be used for continuous monitoring of anything from a field to water supply. "It allows you not just to detect what you did know was out there, but it allows you to detect what you didn't know," he said. Beyond biosecurity, Portal Biotech expects its portable equipment to aid in drug discovery and precision medicine. The company's investors include Earlybird Venture Capital, Science Creates VC, Pillar VC, 8VC, We VC and British Business Bank.
Yahoo
30-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
NATO fund backs biotech startup in push to counter biological threats
By Supantha Mukherjee STOCKHOLM (Reuters) -The NATO Innovation Fund has made its first investment in a biotechnology company, it said on Monday, seeking to enhance defences against biological threats The fund is co-leading a $35 million fundraising round for Portal Biotech, which uses protein sequencing to detect engineered threats and defend against biological warfare. UK-based Portal Biotech's capability is essential for biosecurity defence and security, said Ana Bernardo-Gancedo, senior associate at NATO Innovation Fund. "We believe that it is absolutely imperative that we are able to detect, monitor and create countermeasures," she said. The fund, created in 2022 after the Russian invasion of Ukraine, plans to invest more than $1 billion in technologies that would enhance NATO's defences. Portal Biotech uses an AI-backed technology with biological sensors that can work at the single molecule level on-site, giving results within hours. "It's for everything from measuring diseases to better pandemic prevention ... you can take this out of large labs with long turnaround times and into the field," CEO Andy Heron told Reuters. Heron said the company's instruments can detect any pathogen and can be used for continuous monitoring of anything from a field to water supply. "It allows you not just to detect what you did know was out there, but it allows you to detect what you didn't know," he said. Beyond biosecurity, Portal Biotech expects its portable equipment to aid in drug discovery and precision medicine. The company's investors include Earlybird Venture Capital, Science Creates VC, Pillar VC, 8VC, We VC and British Business Bank. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
