Host: Romily Broad, Tech For Good
Guest: Mark Hitchman, Managing Director, Canon Medical Systems Europe
In 2019, Canon Medical Systems broke ground on a project unlike anything it had built before: A sports arena.
Constructed during the pandemic in Sheffield, UK, with its doors finally open in late 2023, the Canon Medical Arena is now home to the Sheffield Sharks and Hatters men’s and women’s professional baskball teams. It is also host to a range of community activities and functions as a music venue. But while this alone represents a tangible boost to a less affluent corner of the UK’s 10th largest city, it’s the arena’s dual purpose as a medical diagnostics and research centre that could be truly transformative.
As Mark Hitchman, Canon Medical Systems’ UK Managing Director, tells us on this episode of the Tech For Good podcast, it has long been known that putting advanced diagnostics services close to communities means better and earlier diagnoses. And with that comes proven improvements in patient outcomes and significant savings for the health system as a whole.
Already a sponsor of the Sheffield Sharks’ outreach activities in its community, Canon spied an opportunity when the team – buoyed by the growing popularity of professional basketball in the UK – needed a permanent home. It was, says Mark, a way to “integrate professional sport, community wellbeing, diagnostics, and research in one place”.
Now in operation for a few months, we discuss the origin of the arena concept, it’s successes to date, and how it plays a part in the company’s wider ambitions for the UK and the world.
