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This weekly blog is to explore the news around the larger issues around Digital Health, data security, data privacy, AI / ML. technology, social media and related matters.
I will also try to highlight ADHA Propaganda when I come upon it.
Just so we keep count, the latest Notes from the ADHA Board were dated 6 December, 2018 and we have seen none since! It’s pretty sad!
Note: Appearance here is not to suggest I see any credibility or value in what follows. I will leave it to the reader to decide what is worthwhile and what is not! The point is to let people know what is being said / published that I have come upon.
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https://www.innovationaus.com/govts-digital-passenger-app-gets-scathing-reviews/
Govt’s digital passenger app gets scathing reviews
Denham
Sadler
National Affairs Editor
13 April 2022
Home Affairs has said it is committed to improving its digitised version of the incoming traveller declaration after receiving scathing reviews from users since it was launched last month.
The Digital Passenger Declaration replaced the Australia Travel Declaration in February, with all passengers arriving by air in Australia having to fill it out. This is done through a smartphone app, where users have to provide contact details, vaccination status confirmation and travel history.
It’s the first iteration of the government’s permissions capability, which will eventually also serve to digitise the paper-based incoming passenger card and visa processing, and will ultimately be used across a number of government services.
The Digital Passenger Declaration (DPD) has been delivered by Irish-domiciled consulting firm Accenture across a series of contracts relating to the purchasing of off-the-shelf technology and ongoing work.
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https://www.innovationaus.com/privacy-act-review-running-six-months-late/
Privacy Act review running six months late
Denham
Sadler
National Affairs Editor
14 April 2022
A significant review of the Privacy Act is running six months late and will be handballed to the next government, despite being launched two and a half years ago.
The review of Australia’s privacy laws was launched in December 2019 following the competition watchdog’s landmark report on digital platforms, which made a number of recommendations for reforms to the Act.
Instead of backing these recommendations, the Coalition opted to launch another review into the wider Privacy Act.
Nearly a year after announcing the review, the government released an issues paper relating to it in October 2020 and ran a period of consultation on it.
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https://digitalhealth.org.au/blog/top-8-insights-into-better-digital-ways-in-healthcare/
Top 8 insights into better digital ways in healthcare
Apr 11, 2022 | Advocacy, AIDH news, Uncategorized
While there are many current challenges in healthcare, there are also a multitude of opportunities. On the one hand, there are constant challenges and barriers that the health system presents as a fragmented service and the difficulties of connecting care. On the other, there is so much more data and so much more digital capability to leverage and to share what works, allowing us to learn from others who are actively moving the agenda forward. The health crisis of the pandemic has highlighted the importance of digital technology in healthcare.
There are immediate ways we can move forward, with a greater consumer and health practitioner focus, to advocate and progress system change. In 2021 the Clinical Engagement and Digital Health Thought Leadership Series, a collaboration between the Australasian Institute of Digital Health (AIDH) and Cerner, deduced eight key insights with real time practical applications.
Timing is everything – never waste a crisis
The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the need for change to many across the healthcare ecosystem, both because of the constraints it has placed on the delivery of care and traditional models of paper records, but also because of the unique demands on healthcare workers, institutions, and consumers. Across all three events, we were highly encouraged by the breadth of the changes, experiments, research, and interventions underway to better leverage digital health to support these changes. Participants across the system are diving in and using
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https://nbmphn.com.au/Resources/Programs-Services/digitalhealth/Editorial-for-older-Australians.aspx
No Need to Remember Your Health History When Visiting Healthcare Professionals
ADHA Propaganda
The Australian Government is giving everyone in the Blue Mountains, Hawkesbury, Lithgow and Penrith areas a My Health Record - a secure, online digital health record.
Your My Health Record will be a comprehensive record of your health, so you won’t have to worry about having to remember and repeat your health history like medicines, details of chronic conditions, allergies and dates of recent tests.
A My Health Record also allows others to be involved in your care, like a carer or family member, to view and even manage the information on your My Health Record.
Healthcare providers such as doctors, specialists and hospital staff will be able to access it when they need to, like in the case of an accident or emergency.
The My Health Records will be created in mid-June and from mid-July healthcare professionals will be able to start uploading information into them. People are able to opt-out of having a My Health Record if they wish.
To find out more information about My Health Record, visit myhealthrecord.gov.au or call 1800 723 471.
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https://medicalrepublic.com.au/if-nqphn-is-this-bad-what-about-the-rest-of-them/67277
14 April 2022
If NQPHN is like this, what about the rest of them?
Why are we spending more than $1.2 billion a year on PHNs when some clearly don’t have effective governance, transparency, audit and review mechanisms in place?
If you’ve not followed the unravelling of Northern Queensland Primary Health Network over the past few months, then you can get up to speed quickly before you read this story by reading the full open letter of one of the two GP board members who resigned recently (it’s also at the end of this article).
Dr Nicole Higgins resigned from the NQPHN board, citing what she perceived as serious possible conflicts of interest among the board and the PHN membership, in part, in dealing with the secretive Queensland pharmacy prescribing trial through the region.
Dr Higgins suggested that the 11 members (local health organisations that act more or less as shareholders of PHNs) of the PHN were acting like “shadow directors” and running the PHN behind the scenes by controlling the board members.
Section 15 of the NQPHN constitution states that:
Management of the Company: (a) Subject to this Constitution and the Corporations Act, the activities of the Company are to be managed by, or under the direction of, the Board.
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How infrastructure monitoring can maintain the connection between the patient and the healthcare provider
GUEST OPINION: Growing patient expectations are placing higher demands on the healthcare sector than ever before. The instant availability of patient data means X-Rays, MRI scans, ultrasound images and laboratory test results are sent directly to monitors on the wall or a doctor’s tablet.
This enables the main healthcare provider, often the general practitioner (GP), to maintain the ongoing patient connection. Even when they are referred to third party specialists, they still have access to all relevant patient information at any time.
The EHR or EMR
The digital format for recording patient information is the EHR (electronic health record) or sometimes the EMR (electronic medical record) and includes patient demographics, medical history, medical data and laboratory test results. It is a form of customer relationship management (CRM) for the healthcare sector and helps maintain the connection between the patient and their primary healthcare provider.
The EHR is crucial to diagnosing patients and treating them. It provides the patient’s history, past treatments, as well as vital signs and these things need to be assessed together when making decisions about treating a patient.
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Athletes face explosive data intrusions that could impact amateur sport
7:30AM April 13, 2022
An expert panel wants to reign in the exponentially expanding personal data being collected about professional athletes. It not only includes the performance of athlete’s bodies during competition and training, but also the intimacies of mental health, sleep quality, food intake and even possibly menstruation data.
The expert working group has been convened by the Australian Academy of Science and the University of Western Australia’s Minderoo Tech and Policy lab. It wants to start a national conversation on what data is appropriate for aiding athletic performance, and what constitutes an invasion of privacy.
Its discussion paper says the growth in personal information collected about Australian professional athletes has outpaced the scientifically proven benefit to players, with the number of parties interested in this information, especially commercial parties, dramatically shifting the risk vs. reward ratio against the athletes.
Co-chair Associate Professor Julia Powles from the UWA said the trickle down of almost routine data collection practices from professional to amateur sport and schools posed an even wider privacy risk.
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https://www.ama.com.au/vision-for-australias-health
Vision for Australia's Health
11 April, 2022
The Australian Medical Association's vision for reorganising the health system to face the challenges and capitalise on the opportunities of the future.
President's Introduction
Health reform in this country is sorely needed, and long overdue.
If the Australian health system is to evolve, then it needs to be reorganised to tackle the challenges of the future. We cannot expect an underfunded system to absorb the late-stage complications of an ageing, chronically ill and obese society. Already our hospitals, especially our emergency departments, are over-stretched. We cannot keep doing things the same way.
It is realistic for Australia to become the healthiest country in the world, and that should be our collective aim.
We cannot expect to manage the increasing chronic disease burden if we do not engage earlier in prevention and appropriately fund integrated general practitioner medical homes, as the foundation for improved care co-ordination across the entire health system. Seminal in this will be the effective adoption of innovative technologies and an emphasis on quality models of care where safety and clinical appropriateness protect patients.
The beginning point of all reform should be safe, high-quality, patient-centred care.
Note – They seem to think the #myHR is good idea.
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Tuesday, 12 April 2022 08:42
Privacy body calls for changes to ABC iview logins, data sharing
The Australian Privacy Foundation has called for changes in the Australian Broadcasting Corporation Act of 1983 to prevent the ABC from sharing (re-)identifiable personal information with other entities or platforms.
In a statement outlining its election platform principles, the APF said the Act should also be changed to "ensure Australians are not required to provide their personal information or register for a mandatory account to access the ABC’s full digital media services".
The foundation's statement comes ahead of the federal election which is scheduled for 21 May. The ABC last month put in place mandatory registration for use of its iview service.
Researcher Dr Vanessa Teague, who runs her own cyber-security firm Thinking Cybersecurity, demonstrated the leaking of data from iview and even the ABC's news site in a video she uploaded on YouTube.
Even hashed email addresses are sent to commercial entities like Google, Facebook and Tealium.
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Intelicare Says Tech Integral in New Age of Aged Care
InteliCare's monitoring and alert system platform has just secured a contract with one of West Australia's biggest aged care providers. CEO Jason Waller tells Maria Petrakis the partnership shows how technology can be used to solve some of the structural issues facing the aged care sector.
By Maria Petrakis · 12 Apr 2022 ·
InteliCare is a Perth-based company that provides a monitoring platform for the aged care sector. It listed on the exchange in May 2020, so at the height of the COVID pandemic, and it reached as high as 43 cents a share but the price has coasted down to about 9 cents last week.
Its technology uses smart sensors to monitor and map someone’s daily routine: what time they get out of bed, they open the fridge, they turn on the kettle. If there are deviations from that routine, an alert system is triggered that starts with a text to family or a carer suggesting that they check in on the person.
So far, the products have been used in a home care environment and in disability care, but last month it announced a partnership with Bethanie, one of Western Australia’s biggest aged care providers, to give the staff at residential aged care more effective monitoring of patients and residents. This is an important development for InteliCare, even if it isn’t very lucrative, and with aged care back in the spotlight, I thought it would be useful to speak with the CEO, Jason Waller.
So, here’s Jason Waller, CEO of InteliCare.
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Govt’s $1.3 billion manufacturing grants shortlisted for audit
Joseph
Brookes
Senior Reporter
11 April 2022
The administration of $1.3 billion in grants from the Coalition’s flagship manufacturing program could come under the audit office’s microscope after being listed as a potential investigation next year, alongside several government technology projects.
Other programs shortlisted on the ANAO’s work program include the $450 million Digital ID scheme, the Tax Office’s business register modernisation, and the panel arrangements that help consultants land lucrative government contracts, as have areas of privacy and data protections in government digital services, cybersecurity, and digital health.
Stakeholders have been asked to provide feedback on the Australian National Audit Office (ANAO) draft work program by 19 April.
The agency famously uncovered the “Sports Rorts” scandal and the massive overspend on land at Western Sydney airport but has warned it will need to reduce the amount of audits it conducts after successive budget cuts.
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The role of telehealth in modern health care
By Jeremy Paton, team engagement solutions lead
APAC at Avaya
Monday, 11 April, 2022
In recent years teleconsultations have played a growing role in the delivery of healthcare and support services across Australia.
Once reserved for rural patients or those with restricted mobility, COVID-19 has seen telehealth expand to deliver essential services when restrictions limited the number of patients allowed on-premises.
Far from a stop-gap measure, these services are set to become one of the standout legacies from the global pandemic. The government has announced it will invest AU$100 million towards making telehealth a permanent option in the healthcare system.
This comes on the back of consistent research indicating confidence in the method and a lasting appetite for its convenience. A recent white paper by Deloitte, Curtin University and the Consumers Health Forum of Australia found that seven in 10 Australians are willing and ready to use virtual health services.
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https://minerva-access.unimelb.edu.au/items/ab938178-ea04-5029-b755-73f638e10119
If Privacy is Increasing for My Health Record data, it Should Apply to all Medical Records
Authors Prictor, M ; Hemsley, B ; Taylor, M ; McCarthy, S
Date 2018
Source Title The Conversation
Publisher The Conversation Media Group
Citation
Prictor, M., Hemsley, B., Taylor, M. & McCarthy, S. (2018). If Privacy is Increasing for My Health Record data, it Should Apply to all Medical Records. The Conversation Media Group.
Abstract
In response to the public outcry against the potential for My Health Record data to be shared with police and other government agencies, Health Minister Greg Hunt recently announced moves to change the legislation. The laws underpinning the My Health Record as well as records kept by GPs and private hospitals currently allow those records to be shared with the police, Centrelink, the Tax Office and other government departments if it’s “reasonably necessary” for a criminal investigation or to protect tax revenue. If passed, the policy of the Digital Health Agency (which runs the My Health Record) not to release information without a court order will become law. This would mean the My Health Record has greater privacy protections than other medical records, which doesn’t make much sense.
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Digital to be key ad battleground this federal election
Miranda Ward Media writer
Apr 11, 2022 – 5.00am
The 2022 federal election advertising war will be fought on television, but the rise of audiences watching free-to-air through broadcast video-on-demand (BVOD) apps like 7plus or 9Now will help political messages be more targeted at specific audiences than during the 2019 election.
As the Prime Minister has officially called the federal election, legislation now kicks in allowing more political ads on commercial free-to-air television, with free-to-air TV, radio and outdoor billboards to be used to communicate the party’s big messaging, such as broad policy ads and easy to digest grabs like Albanese’s pledge to be a leader “who shows up, who takes responsibility and who works with people” and Scott Morrison’s “that’s why I love Australia”.
“The battleground will be how they can use each medium – TV, outdoor, radio, print, online and social – to tailor a specific message to the various groups and demographics they need to talk to,” said media agency Spark Foundry Australia’s Sue-Ellen Osborn.
“TV will be the medium wherein they can establish the overarching core headline message that they want all people to believe. Social environments will be where they can become more specific and persuasive with their message – including to try to convert the undecided in a more nuanced way.”
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https://medicalrepublic.com.au/heads-in-the-cloud-how-digital-mental-health-scales-up/66699
11 April 2022
Heads in the cloud: digital mental health steps up
Mental Health Psychology Technology
By Fran Molloy
Digital psychological therapies should be a core part of the strategy – but GP referrals are still key.
Our mental wellbeing has been sorely tested by two years of a global pandemic, deadly bushfires and floods, war in Europe and ongoing climate crises, resulting in a societal cry-for-help with psychologists and counsellors now in hot demand.
Digital mental health services have stepped up to meet the call; but not only can they scale up to meet demand, strong evidence backs calls for these services to support future mental health treatment permanently.
Psychiatrist Dr Mike Millard is director at the Clinical Research Unit for Anxiety and Depression at St Vincent’s Hospital Sydney – and part of the team behind This Way Up, a non-profit organisation delivering online cognitive behaviour therapy (CBT) programs for a range of conditions including anxiety, depression, PTSD and obsessive-compulsive disorder.
“Around one in three GPs, psychologists and psychiatrists in Australia currently refer patients to This Way Up,” says Dr Millard.
The program has also been adapted to provide mental health support for stressed-out and pandemic-weary health care professionals.
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David.
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