TELEMEDICINE CLINIC UK JOINS NHS LUNG HEALTH CHECK PROGRAMME  

European provider of teleradiology services, Telemedicine Clinic, in partnership with Alliance Medical and Doncaster Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG), has started providing reporting services for low dose CT scans.

As part of the UK NHS's Targeted National Lunch Health Check programme, the Doncaster-based project is part of a wider UK pilot aimed at improving the nation's lung health and diagnosing cancers at an early stage.

The report from these scans will be carried out using specialist TMC chest radiologists accredited by the British Society of Thoracic Imaging.

Gareth Davies, TMC’s UK medical director, said: “TMC are delighted to have been chosen to support this project – utilising our UK and European network of qualified specialist radiologists, and in conjunction with the best AI software, we are able to deliver a service that will literally help save lives.”

HIMSS HOSTS FIRST CORPORATE MEMBERS EXCHANGE

HIMSS Corporate Members in EMEA met for their first Corporate Members Exchange (CMx) meeting on 10 March. Guest speakers included Dr Peter Gocke, CDO, Charite University Hospital and HIMSS chief clinical officer, Dr Charles Alessi.

CMx aims to emphasise Corporate Member needs and puts into action strategies to build a long-term relationship with core clients. As the key supporters of the HIMSS missions and vision, Corporate Members utilise these exchanges to voice challenges and touch base with healthcare providers and leaders.

During the session, participants discussed various strategic issues on how to advance the HIMSS mission and the role of cloud computing and telehealth.

The next meeting is set to take place in June. In the meantime, you can find more information about becoming a HIMSS Corporate Member here.

NORTH EAST LONDON FT GOES LIVE WITH NEMS BY SERVELEC

North East London FT (NELFT) has gone live with the National Event Management Service (NEMS) in the aim to promote interoperability between its child health services.

Healthcare software provider, Servelec is one of the first organisations to connect to NEMS, in partnership with NHS Digital which led the initiative.

Through the initiative, Servelec can securely provide digital messages to trusts where data flows between Rio, its electronic patient record (EPR) system, and GP, CHIS (Child Health Information Services), maternity, health visiting and other NEMS connected platforms, enabling clinicians access to patient data when needed.

BETTEREHEALTH SUPPORTS EHEALTH IN LOW INCOME COUNTRIES

eHealth inclusion initiative, BETTEReHEALTH, funded under Horizon Europe and started in January 2021, aims to further build on its aim of supporting the deployment of eHealth in African lower income countries.

The initiative looks at mapping and identifying human, technical and public policy factors that are barriers or enablers for eHealth implementation in low and lower middle income countries in Africa.

BETTEReHEALTH plans to coordinate and support the deployment of sustainable eHealth solutions to deliver strategies and policies for more effective use of eHealth, which leads to overall improved health outcomes.

UK GPS USE NEW TECH FOR BLOOD PRESSURE TREATMENT

Global health monitoring and therapy company, OMRON Healthcare, has launched OMRON Hypertension Plus in the UK, a remote patient monitoring (RPM) platform for hypertension.

The platform is designed to help NHS clinicians to manage a patient’s medication plan remotely, based on the patient’s home blood pressure results.

Hypertension Plus generates a tailored medication plan for the patient, which is recommended directly to the clinician, who can then accept or modify plans and inform patients via a mobile app.

These recommendations are underpinned by an algorithm founded on clinically proven medication titration techniques for hypertension, based on current National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) guidelines.

NEW EU PLATFORM TO SUPPORT HEALTH IN DIGITAL WORLD

Futurium, a new EU platform to support active and healthy living in the digital age has been launched as a multi-stakeholder forum to inform people about digital healthcare tools.  

The stakeholders are made up of EU citizens, patients, health and care providers, government authorities, innovators, researchers, civil society and policymakers.

The platform will serve as a forum to exchange and disseminate information on innovation, policies and challenges related to active and healthy living and ageing with digital tools.

ASK NHS AI CHATBOT USED FOR PHYSIOTHERAPY AND MENTAL HEALTH

The Ask NHS app is now leveraging Sensely’s virtual assistant technologies to help users access physiotherapy and mental health resources during the COVID-19 pandemic. 

In a pilot conducted by 18 NHS practices in Lewisham, 50,000 app users were able to book into their local Physio First Service without requiring a referral from their GP. 

This move has resulted in an increase in usage of physiotherapy resources, with a total saving of over 150 hours of clinicians’ time.

In a recent survey, 87% of respondents found that consultations conducted over the phone were clear with 80% likely to recommend it to a friend or family member.

NHS CONFEDERATION HIRES NEW CHIEF EXECUTIVE

The NHS Confederation has hired Matthew Taylor as its new chief executive - a former adviser to prime minister Tony Blair between 2003 and 2006.

Mr Taylor is currently the chief executive of the Royal Society of Arts, Manufacturers and Commerce and will take over from acting Confederation chief executive, Danny Mortimer, who has been in the role since September 2020.

He was previously a senior adviser on policy and strategy in 10 Downing Street, where he carried out a review for the UK government on modern employment practices.

Mr Taylor said: “I am proud to be joining the NHS Confederation at this pivotal time, as we look to build on the innovation and new ways of working that have been a feature of the pandemic and lock them in to improve care for the public.”

HALO THERAPEUTICS PREPARES COVID-19 TREATMENT

UK Bristol-based biotech startup, Halo Therapeutics is currently developing COVID-19 antiviral treatments which include a nasal spray and an asthma-type inhaler.

The company is now preparing to make an application to start clinical trials with infected patients. If proven effective, the antivirals could be used by people who show COVID-19 symptoms, preventing the virus from taking hold and stopping further transmission. The Halo Therapeutics team is currently engaging investors to help finance multiple parallel clinical trials. 

Professor Imre Berger, director of the Max Planck-Bristol Centre for Minimal Biology at Bristol explains: “The aim of our treatment is to significantly reduce the amount of virus that enters the body and to stop it from multiplying. Then, even if people are infected with the virus or exposed to it, they will not become ill because the antiviral prevents the virus from spreading to the lungs and beyond. Importantly, because the viral load will be so low it will likely also stop transmission.” 

LONDON 24-HOUR PRIVATE MEDICAL CLINICAL LAUNCHES

Twenty-four-hour private medical clinic, (med)24 will open its first, flagship clinic in Paddington, London to offer immediate access to GPs 24-hours, 365-days-a-year, via an online service, or in-person at the clinic.

The clinic has been designed as a one-stop-shop able to carry out tests, diagnostics and treatments. The (med)24 clinic features five consulting rooms, two treatment rooms for minor procedures, a therapy suite and access to specialists in nutrition, sports medicine, men’s health, women’s health, children’s health and preventative medicine.

It aims to provide patients with ongoing healthcare, urgent access to preventative care and GP specialist-led care for a number of conditions such as asthma, cardiac issues, diabetes and pain management.

DIGITAL HEALTH AND CARE WALES LAUNCHES DATA AND TECH SERVICES

On 1 April, Digital Health and Care Wales launched to provide national technology and data services across Wales through delivery, innovation and support for health and wellbeing.

The new special health authority (SHA) aims to accelerate digital transformation and drive forward digital and data in health and care.

This project forms part of the Welsh Government's 'A Healthier Wales' plan for healthcare which identifies digital health services as crucial to delivering better health services.

Bob Hudson, interim chair, said: “The pace of technology change has never been faster. We have seen how the rapid deployment of new technology has supported the NHS Wales’ response to the pandemic, with over 5,000 video consultations every week, a national contact tracing platform and vaccination system. But there is more to do."