Stroud Software Battles Superbugs

TUCKED away in a secluded rural HQ, a Stroud firm is leading the battle against superbugs in hospitals across the world.

Painswick-based ICNet started small, but is now the UK's leading supplier of software to combat diseases such as MRSA and C Diff, with more than 500 hospitals on its books.

MD Katie Houghton said: "The issue of superbugs in hospitals is bigger than ever, with a great deal of pressure on health care centres from the public and from politicians.

"Hospitals in this country don't have a great record on this. That's why our technology, which cuts down response times and helps to effectively stop superbug outbreaks, has proved so successful."

ICNet's success has been reflected in its growth since 2000, when Katie and her father Michael set up the firm.

She said: "My dad had run a healthcare software firm, also in Gloucestershire, which he set up around 20 years ago. It worked very closely with the Public Health Laboratory Service in Wales on infection control.

"When the issues of the superbugs started raising their heads, we worked with PHLS again, setting up the firm in a converted tithe barn in Painswick and developing the software very quickly."

Today, the firm has grown from two to 20 employees, and last year posted a turnover of £2m.

Katie said: "The figure has doubled every year over the past three to four years and handling that growth has become part of the business we focus on. It's not a problem, and it's a pleasurable thing to have to bear in mind."

The company's software works by linking to hospitals' internal systems, particularly their laboratory information databases, so it can detect and quickly warn staff of an outbreak.

It can also recall data on where patients have been, in case there is a chance the superbug has been passed on through contact.

Katie said: "Prior to this, most hospitals were relying on paper-based responses, with labs passing information on to staff. It was a slow process and in terms of keeping people informed of a situation, time is of the essence.

"Our system can immediately take information from blood and other tests and inform staff across the hospital so they can swiftly take the appropriate action."

The approach has proved very popular across the UK, where 500 hospitals have signed up – more than 40 percent of the national market.

In the South West, its clients include Gloucestershire NHS Trust, which oversees Cheltenham General, Gloucestershire Royal, Cirencester and Stroud Hospitals, as well as North Bristol NHS Trust and the University of Bristol Hospitals Trust.

ICNet now has installations, partnership deals and distributors in the USA, South Africa, Malaysia, China, France, the UAE, and launched in New Zealand two weeks ago. This week, it will launch its software for the Hong Kong market.

It is also expanding its product range, with plans for new software to focus on conditions such as C Diff, which can be spread by misdiagnosis of antibiotics.