Current projects

Evaluation of the implementation of the Innovative Devices Access Pathway (IDAP) pilot

  • Health care
  • Health improvement
  • Social care

What is the context?

Developers of innovative medical technologies can face regulatory and other barriers that delay the use of these technologies in the NHS. The Innovative Devices Access Pathway (IDAP) Pilot was introduced in September 2023 to try to accelerate access to medical technologies considered to be innovative and transformative, by providing an integrated and enhanced regulatory and access pathway into the NHS to developers.

The IDAP pilot brings together key agencies, including the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC), Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency (MHRA), the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE), National Health Service England (NHSE), Health Technology Wales (HTW) and the Scottish Health Technologies Group (SHTG) to jointly deliver the pathway. The pilot supported eight technologies, which were selected by IDAP partners based on the programme’s selection criteria; the support was non-financial and involved a series of tools which range from supporting the technology developer engage with clinical investigation activities through to meetings with key system stakeholders to discuss NHS adoption and supply chain issues. The tools used are selected through the development of a tailored Target Development Profile (TDP) roadmap.

The stated aims of the pilot are to:

  • test the main elements of the pathway,
  • provide informative learning and feedback to help build the future IDAP,
  • inform the wider development of an end-to-end innovation pathway, as per the Medical Technology Strategy published in February 2023.

  • This project sought to evaluate whether and how the pilot met its aims and suggest potential options to support the roll out of the pilot into a formal programme and maximise learning to inform similar initiatives in the future.

  • We held interviews with:

    1. IDAP partner agencies involved in the delivery of the pathway.
    2. Seven stakeholders in the wider eco-system (e.g. Health Innovation Networks, NIHR).
    3. Ten developers of the selected medical technologies.


  • Partnership working

    Participants saw IDAP as an opportunity to ‘formally’ collaborate with organisations responsible for different aspects of the regulatory and access pathway, across England, Scotland and Wales. The structured nature of engagement, with regular points of contact and shared objectives, facilitated partnership working and helped IDAP partners develop a better understanding of the entire IDAP pathway. However, participants also reported that changes in staff and leadership hindered the development of a shared vision and roles and responsibilities early on. For organisations that did not receive dedicated funding for IDAP, it was challenging to consistently engage due to capacity constraints.

    Developer engagement with IDAP

    Developers participated in IDAP to gain a better understanding of the optimal path to the NHS, to achieve major milestones (e.g. regulatory approval or NHS access), and to influence IDAP partners to bring about broader changes to the regulatory and access pathway. Developers highlighted positive aspects of IDAP, for example the opportunity to receive informal advice, but often balanced these against challenges. We identified a mismatch in expectations between developers and IDAP partners, for example about the non-financial nature of support and the extent to which IDAP would ‘fast track’ and adapt processes.

    Perceived value of IDAP

    Participants generally agreed that IDAP had given developers a better understanding of the pathway, new contacts within key organisations and increased recognition in the medtech landscape. However, opinions about IDAP’s potential to accelerate NHS adoption were mixed. Developers felt that IDAP had largely not sped up their access to the NHS, while many IDAP partners reflected on the long-term value of IDAP support. Some believed the value was greater for SMEs and technologies at an early to 'mid' stage of development. The pilot was also found to have supported partnership working among IDAP partners.

  • Participants suggested greater lead time for team building and agreeing roles and responsibilities for the management and delivery of IDAP. There was also a perceived need for dedicated resource and a stronger UK-wide policy directive. Developers suggested enhanced support for NHS adoption and greater flexibility to tailor support to developer needs. Improved expectation management could ensure developers have a clear understanding of the scope and value of IDAP.

  • We shared our findings with key stakeholders at the relevant agencies in the form of reports and presentations. We are also planning to disseminate the findings to the wider scientific community through peer-reviewed journal articles and conference presentations.