Trailblazing psychologist awarded Women in Innovation Award
On International Women’s Day, Dr Penny Trayner is named as one of 50 women innovators to be recognised by Innovate UK.
08 March 2023
BPS chartered psychologist Dr Penny Trayner, a clinical psychologist and paediatric clinical neuropsychologist specialising in brain injury rehabilitation and treatment for other neurological conditions, has been named as one of 50 women innovators to be awarded the Women in Innovation Award 2023.
On International Women's Day, Innovate UK, the government's innovation agency, has announced it is awarding Dr Trayner £50,000 towards the development of Goal Manager®, an application she has developed to automate goal setting processes and administration in brain injury rehabilitation.
Dr Trayner was picked from more than 900 applicants and will use the funding to build a Data Dashboard, a project which will support clinicians and researchers in answering some of the most unknown questions in rehabilitation.
With millions of people in the UK requiring rehabilitation for various health conditions every year, as well as many millions more living with the long-term consequences of traumatic injuries and problems like stroke, Dr Trayner aims to be a leading light in the digital revolution in healthcare.
The technologies will enable faster identification of patients' difficulties, a more rich and specific understanding of needs, and a joining-up of services and pathways to ensure that rehabilitation is more efficient and people can get better faster.
Dr Trayner, said:
"I am absolutely over the moon to have won this award as it will give me the support and expert guidance I need.
"I have been quite astounded along this process as to how few clinicians are actually involved in designing innovative products within the wellbeing and mental health arena.
"With so many of the applications largely untested, it has become a great passion of mine to encourage other clinicians to get involved and help design technological solutions that are evidence based and fit for purpose, rather than relying on big tech companies imposing solutions on us that do not work.
"It seems that Innovate UK are here to support us and I hope my experience will leave a path for others to follow."
The Women in Innovation Awards are awarded to women who are developing novel solutions to major social, environmental and economic challenges. Each winner benefits from a £50,000 grant, one-to-one business coaching, and a suite of networking, role modelling and training opportunities.
Emily Nott, Head of Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Programmes at Innovate UK said:
"Each year I am blown away by the brilliant ideas and talent we uncover through our Women in Innovation programme.
"Despite these challenging economic times, this year's winners have shown great leadership, passion and resilience in driving their innovations forward.
"Innovate UK will work alongside them now to ensure they have the resources and support required to grow and scale their businesses, while encouraging a new generation of women to get involved in innovation, pursue their ambitions and transform our economy and society."
Dr Trayner has already won grants through Health Innovation Manchester, and was awarded £20,000 in ERDF funds to run a trial of the existing platform within the NHS which commenced in January 2023.
The Innovate UK grant will commence in April 2023, and the Goal Manager® project design team will be joined by Professor Andrew Bateman of the University of Essex.
Professor Bateman is lead for the rehabilitation theme for the National Institute of Health Research (NIHR) Brain Injury MedTech Co-operative, Director of NIHR Research Design Service for East of England and Chair of the UK Acquired Brain Injury forum.
He will be assisting with the research behind the design and evaluation of the new Data Dashboard.