Scots neonatal innovations target hearing loss and earlier care
pharmafile | August 28, 2026 | News story | | NHS, Scottish healthcare, hearing loss, neonatal innovations
Scottish healthcare teams are introducing a range of innovations aimed at improving outcomes for newborns, including a rapid genetic test designed to identify babies at risk of permanent hearing loss before they receive the antibiotic gentamicin.
The 26-minute cheek-swab test is being rolled out in neonatal units across Scotland as part of a programme led by the Centre for Sustainable Delivery (CfSD), hosted at NHS Golden Jubilee. The programme has been named a finalist in the Acute Sector Innovation of the Year category at the 2026 Health Service Journal Awards.
The test identifies a specific genetic variant associated with an increased risk of hearing damage from gentamicin, allowing clinicians to identify affected newborns before treatment. InnoScot Health said the nationally coordinated pathway could reduce hospital stays and pressure on NHS services, with estimated NHS savings of more than £199,000 over five years and wider societal benefits of more than £14.5m.
Gillian Henderson, Head of Innovation Commercialisation at InnoScot Health, said: “Thanks to the CfSD programme’s focus on hearing loss prevention, NHS Scotland has become a pioneer in nationwide genetic testing for newborns with suspected infections.”
Other neonatal innovations highlighted by InnoScot include point-of-care genetic testing, home treatment for newborn jaundice using portable light therapy, and modified theatre scrubs designed to enable immediate skin-to-skin contact between newborns and birthing partners following caesarean sections.
A three-centre model for Scotland’s highest-level neonatal intensive care units (NICUs) is also intended to concentrate specialist expertise and support the care of critically ill and premature infants.
In Glasgow, a service allowing babies with jaundice to receive portable light therapy at home was piloted two years ago and is now fully operational. The approach allows treatment to take place in familiar surroundings while reducing the need for hospital care.
Meanwhile, modified scrubs developed at St John’s Hospital allow a birthing partner to provide skin-to-skin contact with a newborn immediately after a caesarean section while the surgical team completes the procedure.
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