Here are a few I have come across the last week or so. Note: Each link is followed by a title and a few paragraphs. For the full article click on the link above title of the article. Note also that full access to some links may require site registration or subscription payment.
General Comment
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A pretty quiet week with the election not having anything much to say re: Digital Health.
Let me know of any news I have missed!
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New survey aims to gather info on clinical software and systems in aged care
May 16, 2022
May 16, 2022
The Aged Care Industry Technology Council (ACIITC) has initiated a range of activities to address the need for digital care standards in the sector, including a new survey.
The survey is intended to inform the ACIITC on what constitutes the scope of a clinical system in residential aged care and the possible benefits of aligning these systems to standards.
The ACIITC sees this as a critical first step within a larger body of work promoting and detailing the requirements for a standardised approach to the development, interoperability, and deployment of care software within the sector.
Who should complete this survey?
The target audience for the survey is residential aged care facilities, specifically the person overseeing the implantation of clinical software systems.
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https://www.healthcareitnews.com/news/anz/act-ends-contact-tracing-app-mandate
ACT ends contact tracing app mandate
But it will introduce a health screening tool on the app for voluntary use.
By Adam Ang
May 17, 2022 04:34 AM
The Australian Capital Territory government has fully lifted the mandate to use Check In CBR, its QR code-based contact tracing app, across the state.
From Friday last week, licensed venues, registered clubs, nightclubs, strip clubs, brothels and non-ticketed events are no longer required to have mandatory scan-in requirements.
Automatic notifications to users who have visited these high-risk settings have also ceased.
WHY IT MATTERS
As the state's COVID-19 response has evolved over the past months, "contact tracing is no longer a key component," said ACT Minister for Health Rachel Stephen-Smith. ACT started dialling down on contact tracing and other COVID-19 measures in December last year.
Still, the state government is encouraging citizens to keep the Check In CBR app on their phones as it will soon get upgraded with a new health screening tool.
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Qlik part of consortium to deliver ADF e-health project
Wednesday, 18 May, 2022
Qlik has announced it will play a vital role in the transformation of the Australian Defence Force’s (ADF’s) e-health management system.
Under the JP2060 Ph4 project contract awarded by Australia’s Department of Defence, information technology, engineering and science firm Leidos Australia will lead a consortium, including Qlik, to deliver the Health Knowledge Management System (HKMS).
The seven-year project, valued at AU$329.6m overall, will replace the ADF’s legacy electronic health record product with a modern, patient-centric health solution. The new system will record, store, aggregate and analyse health data and information for the ADF population, unifying multidisciplinary primary and occupational care with emergency and hospital care to enable better clinical decision-making.
The JP2060 Ph4 project will create 187 full-time equivalent jobs across Canberra, Brisbane, Melbourne and Sydney, with initial operating capabilities planned for November 2023.
“Qlik is extremely proud to be involved in this important healthcare project. We know the challenges faced by governments in leveraging population-level health data to improve the patient journey from primary to emergency care, rehabilitation to recovery. For defence personnel, that journey from the field through evacuation to hospital and recovery is especially complex,” said Paul Leahy, Country Manager, ANZ at Qlik.
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https://wildhealth.net.au/australian-consortium-wins-329m-adf-e-health-contract/
20 May 2022
Australian consortium wins $329m ADF e-health contract
By Helen Tobler
An Australian consortium led by Leidos Australia has won the contract to deliver the Australian Defence Force’s new electronic health system.
More than 95% of the project will be delivered in Australia, in a move away from the current legacy system, the Defence eHealth System, delivered by UK-based company EMIS in 2014.
The significant upgrade from the current system will track primary, allied, specialist and hospital care information for 85,000 ADF staff in Australia and overseas.
The project, known as “JP2060 Phase 4 Health Knowledge Management Solution”, has a total cost of $329 million including GST, and will enable health care providers to record and track patient information, and will include a patient portal.
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Tuesday, 17 May 2022 23:10
Doctor Anywhere selects Vonage to power Southeast Asia telehealth services
By Staff Writer
Cloud communications provider Vonage helping businesses accelerate their digital transformation, has been chosen by Doctor Anywhere, a regional omnichannel healthcare company headquartered in Singapore, to deliver timely and effective digital healthcare solutions across Southeast Asia using Vonage’s Video API.
Vonage says Doctor Anywhere - a tech-enabled, omnichannel healthcare service provider - is on a mission to make healthcare simple, accessible, and efficient for all, and the company’s digital platform enables users to manage their health easily and effectively through its mobile app.
Users of the digital platform can consult a licensed local doctor anytime, anywhere, and get medication delivered to their doorstep within hours. Medical history, health reports, and other documents are stored in-app for easy access.
Doctor Anywhere also runs in-person clinics, provides home visits and operates an in-app marketplace – DA Marketplace – for health and wellness products and services.
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https://wildhealth.net.au/pregnancy-telecare-may-save-money-and-lives/
20 May 2022
Pregnancy telecare may save money and lives
Technology Virtual/Remote Care
By Fran Molloy
Pregnant women trapped in Ukraine have been able to use remote antenatal monitoring supported by obstetricians in other countries, thanks to remarkable maternity technology that was trialled in Australia.
Since March 2022, maternity patients at Joondalup Health Campus (JHC) in WA have received a remote maternal monitoring kit that will be used to replace around half of their antenatal visits with telehealth consults via a dedicated platform.
The HeraCARE platform, by Israeli tech start-up HeraMED, includes a validated fetal heart monitor and an app tailored to JHC’s requirements, with physical and mental health monitoring prompts, communication tools, alerts and education modules.
The technology is now being rolled out to a civilian field hospital in Ukraine set up by Sheba Medical Centre in Israel, says Idan Goldberger, the Melbourne-based executive director of Australian Friends of Sheba Medical Centre.
Patients are also supplied with other key tests like a blood pressure kit and urine test strips.
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https://www.health.gov.au/news/helping-surgeons-get-all-the-cancer-out-the-first-time
Helping surgeons get all the cancer out the first time
New surgical probes will help surgeons to identify microscopic cancer tissue in real time. This ability to check they have removed all the cancer during the operation will reduce the need for repeat surgery.
Date published: 16 May 2022
Type: News
Intended audience: General public
Hitting the right spot
For the one in seven Australian women who are diagnosed with breast cancer, the first line of treatment is surgery. Surgeons aim to take out all the cancer, so it doesn’t grow back. To do this, surgeons use their sense of touch to find the edges of the cancer which feel stiffer than normal tissue.
But surgeons don’t know for sure if they’ve removed all the cancer until after the operation. They must send the excised tissue to a pathology lab to be examined under a microscope. The lab checks if the margins of normal tissue around the excised cancer are wide enough. If not, some cancer cells may have been left behind.
In breast-conserving surgery around 30% of women must have repeat surgery to take out the rest of the cancer.
‘The reality is it’s often difficult at the time of surgery to know you've hit the right spot,’ breast surgeon Christobel Saunders explains.
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WA Health: No breaches of unencrypted COVID data means well managed and secure system
Western Australia's unified COVID system had no encryption in production or adequate monitoring of its logs, the WA Office of the Auditor-General has found.
Written by Chris Duckett, APAC Editor
May 18, 2022 | Topic: Security
The Auditor-General of Western Australia has once again given state authorities a whack for security weaknesses in IT systems used in the state, with a report on its Public Health COVID Unified System (PHOCUS) tabled on Wednesday.
PHOCUS is used within WA to record and track and trace positive COVID cases in the state, and can contain personal information such as case interviews, phone calls, text messages, emails, legal documents, pathology results, exposure history, symptoms, existing medical conditions, and medication details. The cloud system can also draw information in from the SafeWA app on check-ins -- which the Auditor-General previously found WA cops were able to access -- as well as from flight manifests, transit cards, business employee and customer records, G2G border-crossing pass data, and CCTV footage.
The report found WA Health only used encryption in its test environment, was not able to tell if malicious activity was occurring, and lacked a contract management plan with its vendor.
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https://www.innovationaus.com/push-to-make-victorias-consent-free-digital-health-database-opt-in/
Push to make Victoria’s consent-free digital health database opt-in
Denham Sadler
National Affairs Editor
18 May 2022
The Victorian government’s plan for a centralised health database for all people with no consent has been labelled “bureaucratic imperialism” and “inherently dangerous”, with a last minute push to allow people to opt-out from it.
The state government is attempting to pass legislation facilitating the establishment of a centralised electronic patient health information sharing system for health services to share health information to provide medical care.
The bill was debated in the Victorian upper house last week but did not come to a vote. It will likely be voted on when Parliament sits again next week.
The health record will be used by state hospitals, ambulance services, certain residential care services and public health services, with information stored in it to include prescribed medicines, allergies, discharge summaries and lab results.
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NZ Budget 2022 invests more than $600m in data and digital health
Thursday, 19 May 2022
NEWS - eHealthNews.nz editor Rebecca McBeth
Budget 2022 signals investment
of more than $600 million in data and digital health projects over the next
four years.
This includes; $320 million on ‘health data, digital – foundations and
innovation’; $125 million on ‘population health and disease management digital
capability’; $10.8 million on the data and digital infrastructure to support
the National Public Health Service; and $155 million for the Southern Health
System Digital Transformation Programme.
Health Minister Andrew Little says Budget 2022 supports a shift towards a
national system backed by modern technology and more secure IT platforms.
“During Covid-19, many Kiwis adapted to using modern health technology, to book
their vaccinations and report test results online. The transformation of health
IT will allow for better, more accessible digital supports for patients,
doctors and nurses.
“It’s also important that wherever you are in the country, medical staff can
access your records to make the best decisions for the care you need. That
isn’t always possible at the moment, with the 20 DHBs each running different IT
systems.
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ADHA Email. 20-05-2022
Good morning,
Re: My Health Record Software Vendor Test (SVT) environment
We’re writing to tell you about changes you will need to make on 25 May 2022 to endpoints to the My Health Record Software Vendor Test (SVT) environment and the My Health Record public SSL certificate.
These changes are required because we are moving the endpoints for SVT from the current Global Switch data centre to an Agency-managed secure hosting service, which is Certified Strategic under the Australian Government’s Hosting Certification Framework.
Your endpoints must be updated after 6pm (AEST) Wednesday 25 May 2022 so that you can continue to use the SVT environment. The current endpoints will not work after this time.
We are alerting you to the required changes now to allow time for you to schedule these changes.
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https://www.seek.com.au/job/57058918?type=standout
APS5 Establishment and Reporting Advisor
Australian Digital Health Agency Canberra
$90,901 to $98,303 (including superannuation)
Full time
About the Agency
The Australian Digital Health Agency is responsible for national digital health services and systems, with a focus on engagement, innovation and clinical quality and safety. Our focus is on putting data and technology safely to work for patients, consumers and the healthcare professionals who look after them.
About the Role
The Establishment and Reporting Advisor position is accountable for organising their workflow, performing work and identifying opportunities for improvement. They are required to make sound decisions relating to the areas of establishment and analytical reporting based on policies and legislation.
The position will be required to communicate with and provide advice to, a wide variety of internal and external stakeholders that supports the effective maintenance and operation of the HR establishments and information systems.
They will be responsible for providing accurate and informative reports and data to enable effective establishment management, internal reporting and external reporting to government.
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https://buscircle.com/c30e0269-8115-4971-9f39-ddc402300ad2/
Dr Malcolm Thatcher, Chief Technology Officer, Australian Digital Health Agency
Canberra Venue TBC
18 Oct 2022
12:00 PM
12:00-2:00pm AEST
Dr Malcolm Thatcher is the Chief Technology Officer at the Australian Digital Health Agency, a role he commenced in February 2021.
Dr Thatcher is responsible for managing the Agency’s end-to-end technology operations of national digital health solutions including My Health Record. Dr Thatcher is also responsible for cyber security, core systems testing services and internal IT services.
Dr Thatcher completed his doctoral degree (PhD) at the Queensland University of Technology (QUT) with a focus on digital health risk and governance. He also holds an Honours Degree in Computer Science from the University of Queensland, a Masters’ Degree in Applied Computer Science from QUT and has completed a certificate course in Leadership Strategies for Information Technology in Healthcare from Harvard University.
Dr Thatcher is a Fellow of the Australasian Institute of Digital Health, a Fellow of the Australian Computer Society and a Graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors.
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Telstra Health appoints ex-Cerner official to new Chief Health Officer role
This comes as Dr Vincent McCauley is stepping down from his CMO/CMIO posts.
By Adam Ang
May 19, 2022 05:23 AM
Australian digital health company Telstra Health has named Dr Monica Trujillo to its newly created chief health officer post, effective 1 June.
According to a media release, Dr Trujillo is bringing with her more than two decades of experience in the health sector with backgrounds in medicine, executive roles, and clinical informatics.
She was previously a senior director, CMO, and chief CIO at Cerner Australia and Asia-Pacific.
Before joining Cerner in 2018, she had served various roles at the Australian Digital Health Agency, including as its first chief CIO.
Her appointment comes as Dr Vincent McCauley announced his resignation as CMO and CMIO of Telstra Health. Dr McCauley will work with Dr Trujillo during a transition period next month.
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https://www.itnews.com.au/news/tpg-telecom-adds-gfast-to-its-fttb-network-580205
TPG Telecom adds G.Fast to its FTTB network
By Richard Chirgwin on May 19, 2022 12:38PM
Promises near-gigabit download speeds.
TPG Telecom has upgraded its fibre-to-the-building (FTTB) network with G.Fast technology, making good on a promise made late last year to be "a more robust competitor to NBN Co".
The company launched two tiers of services - 250/50Mbps and up to gigabit/50Mbps - and said they could be ordered by 230,000 premises within over 2000 buildings, via RSPs that sell services on the FTTB network.
The telco said its FTTB services are now "up to 10 times faster" than similar FTTB services offered by NBN Co.
TPG Telecom group executive for wholesale, enterprise and government Jonathan Rutherford said the service offers “some of the fastest broadband speeds available in Australia today”.
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https://www.itnews.com.au/news/nbn-cos-250mbps-and-gigabit-growth-is-finally-clear-580214
NBN Co's 250Mbps and gigabit growth is finally clear
By Ry Crozier on May 19, 2022 12:28PM
Analysis: Who paid for a speed upgrade when the promotional pricing ended.
The net effect of NBN Co’s free try-before-you-buy upgrade to its higher speed tiers is finally clearer, as the impact of a long period of discounting subsides.
The ‘Focus on Fast’ marketing campaign offered customers a free six-month upgrade, by pricing 100Mbps and above the same at a wholesale level.
The campaign also offered retail service providers (RSPs) a potential connectivity virtual circuit (CVC) windfall, since higher plans come with more bundled CVC bandwidth that could temporarily offset the need to purchase extra.
Since the campaign started on February 1 last year, it’s been unclear what the net result would be: that is, would customers that were upgraded free to higher speed tiers pay the difference when the campaign expired?
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TPG outpaces NBN with G.Fast network rollout
3:48PM May 18, 2022
TPG will be Australia’s first major telco to launch G.Fast technology, offering speeds of up to 10 times that currently offered by NBN in more than 2000 buildings – more than 230,000 premises overall – across the nation.
The telco this week is launching G.Fast in NSW, Queensland, Victoria and the ACT across its wholesale network to buildings using fibre-to-the-building (FTTB) technology. The buildings are typically townhouses and apartment blocks.
TPG’s executive in charge of wholesale, enterprise and government, Jonathan Rutherford, said G.Fast enabled speeds of up to 1 Gbps – about 10 times that typically offered by NBN in its FTTB network – with unlimited data and no complicated AVC or CVC charges.
A Blu-ray movie can be downloaded in about two minutes with 1 Gbps, while a high-definition TV episode could be downloaded in eight seconds.
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Enjoy!
David.
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