Jimmy’s, Tissuemed, DePuy International — when it comes to medical innovation and health technology, Leeds is at the cutting edge.

Leeds has become something of a European capital for health research and technologies. In fact, there are millions of people around the world who carry a little bit of Leeds with them wherever they go.

Hip to be square
Local medical firm Charles F Thackray Ltd worked closely with the ‘father’ of modern hip replacement surgery, Sir John Charnley, and began manufacturing the Charnley Hip System in 1963 — it remains the best selling cemented hip system in the world.

The tradition of technical excellence continues to this day and, since their acquisition in 1990, Thackray has operated under the name DePuy International, part of the Johnson and Johnson group. Worldwide, DePuy employs more than 6,000 people, 750 of whom are based in Leeds — home to its international manufacturing and business operations outside the Americas.

This is only a part of Leeds’ expertise in medical technologies — there are 85 different companies in Leeds specialising in medical devices, health-related biotechnology and pharmaceuticals.

Jimmy’s will fix it
The city is also home to St James’s University Hospital, which together with Leeds General Infirmary forms part of Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust, the largest teaching hospital in Europe. The hospitals boast world-class facilities, made famous by the ITV series ‘Jimmy’s’.

The trust has an annual turnover of £750 million, employing more than 14,000 people across six sites and treating around a million patients a year. June 2007 saw St James’s become the first NHS hospital ever to perform an adult-to-adult live liver transplant and it is also a world leader for cancer and cardiac care.

Maggie Boyle, Chief Executive of Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust, comments: “We are tremendously proud to be continuing the traditions of innovation and excellence in health care in the city with the £260 million Bexley Wing, home to the St James’s Institute of Oncology, which opened in early 2008. It's the biggest cancer centre in Europe, providing world class facilities for treating cancer patients, medical education and research.”

Medical manufacturing
The manufacturing output of healthcare companies in Leeds is over £67 million annually, with the Yorkshire and Humber region recognised as one of the UK’s main centres for medical device production. More than 400 companies in the region account for almost 15% of the sector’s national output.

Innovative technologies are still developed in the city today; Leeds firm Tissuemed markets renowned surgical product ‘tissuebond’, while award-winning companies such as Brandon Medical, Photopharmica and Surgical Innovations have all launched new life-saving products from Leeds.

Research leads the way
Evidence of Leeds’ history of pioneering medical advances is on display at the Thackray Museum, located next to St James’s. Recounting the development of medicine over the years, the museum is the largest of its kind in Europe, and was founded with the company archives of Charles F Thackray Ltd.

Looking forward, Leeds has recently secured £20 million investment to establish the Institute of Molecular Medicine, Epidemiology and Cancer Research at St James’s, and a further £10 million for laboratories in the Leeds Institute of Genetics, Health and Therapeutics at the University of Leeds.

With such a strong heritage of innovation, and continuing levels of investment in the future, the medical sector in Leeds will be fighting fit for years to come.