A leading patent attorney has said university technology transfer is ‘vital to the future of healthcare’, as patent attorneys and representatives of leading universities from around the world gather in Phoenix, Arizona for a major conference on the subject next week.
Dr Adrian Bradley, a Partner and Chartered Patent Attorney at intellectual property firm Cleveland Scott York, made the comments as he headed to the Association of University Technology Managers (AUTM) annual meeting which runs from 18 to 21 February.
“Important discoveries take place on a daily basis in the laboratories of universities and research institutions. Many of these have the potential to make profound differences to the lives of patients,” said Dr Bradley.
“However, effectively transferring medical breakthroughs from the laboratory to the operating table, hospital bed or doctors’ surgery is a real challenge and failing to widely disseminate new medical technologies risks thousands of patients suffering or dying unnecessarily.
“Ultimately, this means successful university technology transfer programmes are vital to the future of healthcare.”
Technology transfer in the healthcare sector involves protecting, promoting, funding and partnering new technologies, and bringing them to the market so that they can improve and save the lives of patients.
Dr Bradley said: “Disseminating new breakthroughs in healthcare effectively, efficiently and quickly is a challenge that I know is being taken seriously by delegates at AUTM, where a number of sessions relating to medical technologies will take place.
“I am looking forward to the opportunity to engage with colleagues from around the world on this issue, which makes an enormous difference to the lives of patients.”
As a Chartered Patent Attorney, Dr Bradley plays an important role in the technology transfer process by advising on the protection of inventions from unauthorised copying, enabling their commercial use and opening new revenue streams for universities.
He works extensively with organisations in the UK, US, Czech Republic and India to build their infrastructure so that they can improve and save the lives of patients.
Dr Bradley added: “This is an important opportunity to share best practice in establishing and improving university technology transfer operations.”
Cleveland Scott York has offices in the City of London, St Albans, Reading and Brussels.[:]