Philip Ross

Director

Design in Mental Health Network

Biography

Philip Ross joined the DIMHN board in 2013, working initially on the members’ scheme and then moving to the Testing and Innovation workstream in 2015.  As a manufacturer specialising within the mental health sector, he was frustrated with the lack of clarity and repeatability of the testing methods which made it challenging and slow for lifesaving innovations to get adopted, not to mention the significant costs of testing with every Trust or Health Board, sometimes for each project.  He’s well placed with a Masters in Mechanical Engineering, not to mention the testing his company, Safehinge Primera, has carried out over the years.  Over the past three years, he’s worked with BRE to establish the testing development partnership, and with a small working group to develop the overall approach and format of the testing and accreditation output.  In the summer of 2018, the board sought input from across the sector with architects, estates managers, clinicians and manufacturers on what issues need capturing by product evaluation. His focus is now on delivering the final testing guidance and establishing an accreditation scheme with BRE.