MEMBERS of the public are being invited to take part in a Dragons’ Den event at Kettering General Hospital where staff will compete to win a share of £100,000 of innovation cash* that will go towards helping patients.
The hospital has worked closely with local business leaders to put on the event, which takes place on Thursday, 11 October, and will closely mirror the popular BBC2 programme.
Hospital staff will take turns to pitch their own ideas to help improve patient care to a panel of six Dragons, with the eventual winners seeing the £100,000 allocated to making their ideas happen.
The panel will be made up of five local business leaders who, like the TV Dragons, have demonstrated outstanding innovation and business initiative themselves. The members of the public who attend the free event will become the sixth Dragon and be involved in choosing the winning schemes.
The Dragons include:
Alan Burns – Chairman, Kettering General Hospital
Liz Jeeves – Presenter/Producer, Connect FM
William Church – Cheaney Shoes
Goyas Miah – Owner, The Raj Restaurant
Lorna Dodge – Director, S.C. Agency
Alan Burns said: “We strongly believe that our staff have great ideas on how to improve patient care and we were looking for a fun way of harnessing that power.
“The Dragons’ Den-style event fitted the bill perfectly. As a board we wanted to demonstrate our support so we’ve committed an innovation fund of up to £100,000 in order to support some of the best new ideas to help improve patient care or experience. Putting up this £100,000 of hospital capital demonstrates to staff that we are very serious about putting their ideas into action and it will be up to the Dragons to decide whether to back the contestants and how much money to give them.
“The real winners, of course, will be our patients who will be benefiting once those great ideas are put into action.”
Contestants will already have been through an application and shortlisting process before appearing at the event to ensure their ideas have good potential. Each individual or team will have up to 10 minutes to deliver their pitch and the Dragons will get five minutes for questions. At the end of the event, the Dragons will consult, and the audience votes will be counted. The winners will be presented with giant cheques and trophies on the night.
The show will take place in The Hall@KGH, the staff recreation hall adjacent to Car Park B, from 4.30pm to 7pm on October 11, with seating available for members of the public and staff. Those who attend will receive tickets to obtain parking for just £1.
If you would like to attend this free event, confirm your seat either via an email to or through our event booking web page at Eventbrite.
Follow the build-up to the show on the KGH Facebook page or Twitter. There will also be a hashtag in use for the event – #dragonsdenkgh2018.
*The prize money for the event has been specifically set aside from the Trust’s capital budget to enhance patient care and experience ? a key priority for the Trust and at the heart of its core CARE (Compassionate, Accountable, Respectful, and Engaging) values.