“Anti-Superbugs” Project: Trento is hosting the consultation with companies

Fighting “superbugs”, antibiotic-resistant microorganisms, is one of the priorities for public health and healthcare systems, also through the use of innovative technological solutions applicable to health facilities and able to support professionals’ decisions and actions. With the aim of stimulating the development of new Information and Communication Technology (ICT) solutions, Trento will be hosting a consultation for companies as part of ANTI-SUPERBUGS, a pre-commercial procurement project promoted by a number of European regions and co-financed by the EU as part of its policies on ICT development on January 31.

The aim of the ANTI-SUPERBUGS project is to encourage the development and implementation of innovative technological solutions able to detect the presence of antibiotic-resistant microorganisms in hospitals and to share this information with clinicians in real time. In practice, infection prevention and control could be more effective and efficient through ICT solutions that enable early identification and guarantee a continuous surveillance on the presence of resistant microorganisms through the production of data and feedback useful to support the actions of health providers.

The Autonomous Province of Trento (Department of Health and Social Solidarity) is one of the procurers participating in the project, which is promoted by a consortium of institutions, healthcare facilities and research organizations in: Spain (coordination), Germany, Italy, United Kingdom, Sweden and Turkey. The pre-commercial procurement is a research and development services procurement tool promoted by the European Community which in recent years has also been implemented in Italy. It is based on a competition between companies, based on an explicit demand for innovation deriving from real problems and needs and aimed at developing products and services that are not yet available on the market.

The open market consultation will take place next January 31 at Fondazione Bruno Kessler in Povo and will be addressed to the industrial and research sector interested in discussing the existing solutions and new technological frontiers, in view of participation in the call for tenders which will be published in the coming months. The consultation is part of a wider event, aimed at industry and healthcare professionals.

The morning session will focus on providing elements of context and perspective with respect to problems, strategies and tools on the issue of prevention and control of hospital infections and antimicrobial resistance. We will also discuss the use of the PCP – Pre Commercial Procurement as a tool to optimize spending by the public administration and the importance of cost-effectiveness assessment to support the purchase and deployment of health technologies. The afternoon will see the Open Market Consultation of the ANTI-SUPERBUGS project targeting companies interested in receiving detailed information and discussing needs, challenges, technology advancements and business cases with the consortium.