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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Another pretty quiet week, only interrupted by a total rubbish press release from the ADHA seemingly hoping they can convince radiologists – of all people – the use their monster. Fat chance I reckon.
Otherwise – all sorts on interesting bits and pieces. Enjoy!
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HealthEngine launches $60 GP video consults
The company's GP founder says patients are keen — even without MBS subsidies
28th February 2020
Patients looking to book GP appointments through the HealthEngine app are now being offered the option of a $63 video consult with GPs instead.
The booking business, which says it is used by more than one million Australians every month, says it has struck deals with telehealth companies Phenix Health and Doctors on Demand.
None of the consults accessed through the app will attract Medicare rebates, so patients will pay $69 for a Phenix consult lasting 15 minutes or less.
For Doctors on Demand, the consult fee is $62.95 in business hours, rising to $92.25 for after-hours appointments.
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Coronavirus: Infection fears trigger push for GP Skype calls
2:04PM February 29, 2020
GPs would be allowed to claim for Skype consultations with patients suspected of having coronavirus, minimising the risk of spreading the disease, under a proposal backed by state health ministers.
It comes as the number of confirmed coronavirus cases in Australia jumped to 25 on Saturday and the World Heath Organisation raised the risk of the spread of the disease to “very high”.
A 63-year-old woman who recently returned from Iran is in isolation at the Gold Coast University Hospital, while a 79-year-old west Australian woman has tested positive after being evacuated from the Diamond Princess cruise ship in Japan.
According to the Australian health department there are 84,117 cases world wide and 2872 reported deaths.
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Telstra delays legacy copper disconnections for more fire-affected areas
More states and territories, postcodes added.
Telstra has widened the number of bushfire-affected states and postcodes for which it will delay mandatory disconnection of legacy copper services.
The telco temporarily suspended some disconnection activities in NSW and Queensland in mid-November as the two states faced a “catastrophic” fire danger and - in NSW’ case - a week-long state of emergency.
The call was made “to minimise risks to front-line staff, and to protect existing lines of communication for affected customers”, Telstra said at the time.
Though it indicated a few weeks later that it planned to lift the suspension due to the fires being “seemingly under control”, it has now emerged that, together with NBN Co, it agreed to continue the suspension and expand it to other states and territories.
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Toll close to restoring key service three weeks after cyber attack
Feb 24, 2020 — 4.36pm
Logistics giant Toll Group has said its main online customer service MyToll is set to be fully restored this week, more than three weeks after it was taken down due to a ransomware cyber attack.
The MyToll online portal is the main way Toll's customers order and track shipments, and its extended absence has been a cause of growing frustration to clients including Telstra, Optus, Officeworks and Footlocker, which have been forced to seek alternate providers to continue fulfilling their own online orders.
Toll Group says it has been working through a progressive reinstatement of systems.
The identity of Toll's hackers is still unknown or undisclosed, but it is known the company refused to pay a ransom after its systems were infected by a ransomware bug known as Mailto.
On Monday a company spokesperson said it had been working through a progressive reinstatement of systems which had meant it was operating more or less as normal across large parts of its global network for much of last week.
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Toll reintegrates with customers' IT systems after ransomware attack
In 'final stages' of month-long recovery.
Toll Holdings says it is in the “final stages” of reactivating its IT systems and reintegrating them with major customers almost one month after experiencing a devastating ransomware attack.
“Toll is working through the final stages of IT systems reactivation,” it said in an update on Wednesday morning, its first in about a fortnight.
“This has been a progressive process which, since much of last week, has had Toll operating essentially as normal across large parts of our international network.
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Australian wool sales stopped by ransomware attack
Software maker Talman hit by attackers.
Wool sales across Australia have been halted after Talman, a major software supplier to the industry, was hit by a ransomware attack that encrypted its production databases.
Talman Group’s CEO Dr Pramod Pandey confirmed the attack to iTnews and said he was in regular contact with the Australian wool industry on the company’s recovery efforts.
On its website, the company says “more than 75 percent of the wool industry in Australia and New Zealand uses” its software for “public and private auctions, private sales, delivery, dumping and local or overseas processing”.
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https://www.itnews.com.au/news/victoria-health-builds-incident-reporting-system-for-hospitals-538543
Victoria Health builds incident reporting system for hospitals
Benchmark Awards 2020 finalist.
Victoria’s Department of Health and Human Services has developed a new incident and feedback reporting system to improve patient and client safety across the state’s hospitals and health services.
The Victorian health incident management system (VHIMS) central solution streamlines the collection, analysis and reporting of clinical and occupational health and safety incidents, as well as other hazards and consumer feedback.
It replaces a decade-old incident and feedback reporting system, which the department says has stymied accurate state-wide reporting for the better part of a decade” and frustrated healthcare professionals.
Senior stakeholders first urged that a new system be developed following a series of unfavourable audits in 2013 and 2015, and the government’s ‘Targeting Zero’ review of hospital safety and quality assurance in Victoria.
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Victorian medical practitioners – SafeScript will be mandatory in Victoria from April 2020
The Board is sharing the following information about SafeScript on behalf of the Victorian Department of Health and Human Services. This information is relevant to medical practitioners practising in Victoria.
SafeScript, Victoria’s real-time prescription monitoring system, is an important clinical tool that helps medical practitioners make safer decisions when prescribing high-risk medicines. SafeScript facilitates early identification, treatment and support for patients who are developing signs of dependence. It will be mandatory for medical practitioners practising in Victoria to check SafeScript before prescribing a monitored medicine from April 2020.
SafeScript provides red, amber and green pop-up notifications to prompt medical practitioners about information in the system and possible clinical risks that have been identified which should be reviewed and managed appropriately. It is important that clinicians understand that a red notification does not automatically mean that you should stop prescribing.
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Personal data concerns stymie digital health initiatives
Coupled with lengthy registration processes.
Research out of Curtin University has found that poor registration processes and concerns over data governance could be the biggest obstacle in getting consumers on board with digital health initiatives.
Published in the journal PLOS ONE, the study underlines the need for improved public understanding of data security and increased transparency by health app managers, lead researcher David Lim said.
Lim, from Curtin’s School of Public Health, added that the research also identified a number of characteristics linked to users’ willingness to adopt digital health technologies, with those with the highest education levels most willing to use health apps.
However, this group also had the strongest expectations around data governance and had strong negative associations with apps implemented by private consultancy firms or with little governance structure.
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Thursday, 27 February 2020 13:24
Australians love their streaming services, says ACMA
Australians are taking up subscriptions to streaming services in ever increasing numbers, with 71% of Aussies with a TV set in the home using at least one paid video streaming service in 2019.
According to a new report from the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) - which says Australia’s "love affair" with streaming continues to thrive - one in 10 Australians had four or more subscription services in the home in 2019, up from just 4% in 2017.
And overall 83% of Australian Internet users reported viewing either paid or unpaid video content online in the past six months.
In the three months to 30 June 2019, Australians downloaded a total of almost six million terabytes of data - enough to watch around 2.2 billion hours of high-definition video - and of that data, more than 88% was downloaded through fixed internet services.
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Using AI to save the world from antimicrobial resistance
Antony is a medical reporter with a special interest in technology and pharmacy.
26th February 2020
When the list of medical science heroes — Edward Jenner, Alexander Fleming, Joseph Lister — is updated to include those from the 21st century, one entry could be a computer program with no name.
At least, that’s the suggestion from researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), who say they have developed an artificial intelligence (AI) program to save the world from the perils of antimicrobial resistance.
And they have already proclaimed success with the drug Halicin — which they named after the robot HAL in 2001: A Space Odyssey.
Writing in the journal Cell, they say they trained AI on 2335 chemicals known to inhibit growth of E. coli antibiotics, then let it loose on 6111 chemicals currently being investigated in clinical trials.
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Monday, 24 February 2020 15:56
Australian researchers 'unlock key' to cheaper high-tech telecom, medical diagnostic devices
Researchers at the Australian Research Council’s Centre of Excellence in Exciton Science (ACEx) say they will soon have a much cheaper way of stabilising, blocking and steering light – potentially lowering the costs of high-tech equipment used in telecommunications, medical diagnostics and consumer electronics.
The researchers, led by Dr Girish Lakhwani, a chief investigator for ACEx, have announced that they have found a way to manipulate light produced by lasers at a fraction of the cost of existing methods.
ACEx say that for a wide range of modern electronics, including broadband communications and fibre-optic sensors, manipulating light is a critical function, and without the ability to bend and deflect reflected light, for instance, the lasers and amplifiers that are central to broadband networks would be overwhelmed and fail.
The device used to manage light in high-tech systems is called a Faraday rotator, and comprises ferromagnetic crystals surrounded by powerful magnets – which together give operators the ability to adjust the “polarisation”, or alignment of waves, in a light beam.
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Largest fine for spam paid to Australian regulator
Australia’s number two carrier, Optus, has paid a $504,000 infringement notice after being found by the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) to have committed significant breaches of spam laws.
The ACMA found Optus sent SMS and email marketing emails to approximately 750,000 consumers after they had already unsubscribed, and also sent billing notices which did not have an unsubscribe facility.
Australian spam laws were introduced in 2003 and historically the fines have been modest. However this is the largest infringement notice ever paid for spam and is indicative of Australian regulators becoming increasingly active in the markets they regulate.
In addition to the fine, the ACMA accepted a court enforceable undertaking in which Optus will appoint an independent consultant to review its systems, policies, and procedures.
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Corruption watchdog calls for mandatory data breach laws in Qld
Wants new reporting measures to combat information exposure risks.
Queensland’s corruption watchdog has called for state government agencies to be subjected to a mandatory data breach notification scheme after uncovering corruption risks around confidential information.
The Crime and Corruption Commission made the recommendation in its Operation Impala report [pdf] into the misuse of confidential information in the state’s public sector.
Operation Impala was established last August to investigate corruption and its risks “in relation to the improper access to and disclosure of confidential information in the public sector”.
The inquiry found “potential corruption risks associated with confidential information” at seven government agencies, including police, health, transport, education and corrective services.
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'Electronic nose' detects Barrett's oesophagus
Study shows 'promising approach' using breath analysis
26th February 2020
By AAP
An electronic nose has been found to accurately detect Barrett's oesophagus, by analysing a patient's breath, Dutch researchers say.
According to a proof-of-concept study in Gut, 402 adults who were scheduled to have an endoscopy instead were asked to breathe into a highly sensitive "electronic nose" for five minutes.
The machine then measured the volatile organic compounds that can be detected in breath and indicate abnormal cell activity.
The results showed that 129 of the patients had Barrett's oesophagus, while 141 had acid reflux and another 132 had a normal oesophagus.
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Child psychiatry delivered via video link
Tuesday, 25 February 2020
eHealthNews.nz editor Rebecca McBeth
A child psychiatrist in Taranaki has dealt with a doubling in his workload by delivering nearly 20 per cent of his appointments via telehealth.
Yariv Doron says he has reduced wait times and increased his accessibility since introducing virtual appointments and direct email access for patients in mid-2019.
Taranaki DHB’s clinical information reference group is now looking at how to expand telehealth to other services, using child psychiatry as an exemplar.
Doron was one of two child psychiatrists at the DHB until his colleague retired last year and, despite a recruitment drive, a suitable replacement has not been found.
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Telehealth data helps guide terror attack response
Tuesday, 25 February 2020
eHealthNews.nz editor Rebecca McBeth
Homecare Medical tracked the impact of the Christchurch terror attack via the number and clinical themes of calls to its helpline and provided intelligence to help health services better plan their response.
Chief executive of the digital telehealth service provider Andrew Slater presented on the organisation’s response to the 15 March terror attack at HiNZ Conference 2019 in Hamilton last November.
He said Homecare Medical went into emergency response mode about 20 minutes after the first 111 call and rapidly brought online around 100 clinicians who work from home to support those on the frontline.
“We were able to then look at what was happening in the community based on what we were hearing from both ambulance and police, and start responding in a virtual way,” Slater said.
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Wellbeing app provides channel for hospital staff
Thursday, 27 February 2020
eHealthNews.nz editor Rebecca McBeth
Waitematā and Auckland DHBs are using the Chnnl app to listen and respond to staff wellbeing.
The app allows staff to self-report their wellbeing on a daily basis and connects them with relevant information and support services.
Users can also write a journal entry or anonymously report things such as bullying and harassment.
Waitematā DHB started using the app in November for its new cohort of first-year house officers and will evaluate the project after one year.
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Alcidion Group - H1 FY2020 Results
Solid start to FY2020 with significant contracts signed and investments for growth
Highlights:
- H1 FY2020 revenue of $8.2 million, 12.3% increase vs H1 FY2019
- Investment for growth underway in areas of sales, marketing and product development to capitalise on an increasingly favourable market opportunity in UK and ANZ
- Net loss of $1.8 million, as a result of investments made to accelerate operations in line with growth strategy
- $15.4M revenue already set to be recognised in FY2020, compared to FY2019 full year revenue of $16.9M with total sold revenue of $37.2M out to FY2025
- Cash reserves of $17.2 million, strengthened balance sheet from $16.2 million placement
- Miya MEMRe launched, following successful innovation Proof of Concept (PoC) at Murrumbidgee Local Health District (LHD)
- Important contracts signed including with private provider Healthscope, Dartford and Gravesham NHS Foundation Trust and our first NHS Global Digital Exemplar site, Taunton and Somerset NHS Foundation Trust
Melbourne, Victoria – Alcidion Group Limited (ASX: ALC) today released its financial results for the six month period ending 31 December 2019 (H1 FY2019).
Alcidion delivered revenue in H1 FY2020 of $8.2 million, a 12.3% increase on H1 FY2019. This increase is due to the added recognised revenue from several significant customer contracts signed over the past 18 months. Overall, the Company delivered a net loss of $1.8 million in H1, reflecting the investments made in line with the Company’s accelerated growth strategy.
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Alcidion delivered revenue in H1 FY2020 of $8.2 million, a 12.3% increase on H1 FY2019. This increase is due to the added recognised revenue from several significant customer contracts signed over the past 18 months. Overall, the Company delivered a net loss of $1.8 million in H1, reflecting the investments made in line with the Company’s accelerated growth strategy.
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New My Health Record eLearning course launched for better engagement with clinical radiologists
ADHA is working with RANZCR to launch the My Health Record CPD modules for clinical radiologists and imaging practices.
By Dean Koh
February 27, 2020 11:25 PM
The Australian Digital Health Agency (ADHA) announced the launch of a new education resource which is aimed to help clinical radiologists and other members of an individual’s healthcare team to develop a comprehensive understanding of My Health Record and how to navigate the system.
ADHA is working with the Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Radiologists (RANZCR) to launch the My Health Record Continuing Professional Development (CPD) modules for clinical radiologists and imaging practices.
WHY IT MATTERS
According to the latest statistics from January 2020 by ADHA, 43% of pathology and diagnostic imaging practices are connected to my Health Record. Over 2019 the Agency’s focus was on GPs and pharmacists as primary healthcare providers and to date 90% are registered and over 70% are now actively using My Health Record.
The Agency is working closely with other key healthcare provider groups such as clinical radiologists, to increase use of My Health Record so that both consumers and healthcare providers can view this important health information.
The Agency is working closely with other key healthcare provider groups such as clinical radiologists, to increase use of My Health Record so that both consumers and healthcare providers can view this important health information.
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Media Release: New training modules for clinical radiologists to increase number of test results on My Health Record
28 February, 2020: New training modules for clinical radiologists to increase number of test results on My Health Record.
The latest statistics from January 2020 show that 43% of pathology and diagnostic imaging practices are connected to my Health Record. To enable providers to get maximum value from My Heath Record and increase the number of test results uploaded for viewing by GPs and their patients, the Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Radiologists (RANZCR) and Australian Digital Health Agency (Agency) have launched My Health Record Continuing Professional Development (CPD) modules for clinical radiologists and imaging practices.
Over 2019 the Agency’s focus was on GPs and pharmacists as primary healthcare providers and to date 90% are registered and over 70% are now actively using My Health Record. The Agency is working closely with other key healthcare provider groups such as clinical radiologists, to increase use of My Health Record so that both consumers and healthcare providers can view this important health information.
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Amazon bars one million products for false coronavirus claims
Removes deals attempting to gouge customers.
Amazon has barred more than 1 million products from sale in recent weeks that had inaccurately claimed to cure or defend against the coronavirus, the company told Reuters on Thursday.
Amazon also removed tens of thousands of deals from merchants that it said attempted to price-gouge customers.
The world’s largest online retailer has faced scrutiny over the health-related offers on its platform, and earlier this week Italy launched a probe into surging prices around the internet for sanitising gels and hygiene masks while it battled the biggest outbreak in Europe.
The coronavirus has caused at least 2797 deaths globally.
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As climate change bites, NBN is looking to preinstall satellite links at evacuation centres
NBN CEO Stephen Rue has said the climate is going to get worse and it is a serious focus for the company.
In contrast to its political masters, the Australian government-owned broadband wholesaler has said it is taking the threat of climate change seriously.
Speaking to the Joint Standing Committee on the National Broadband Network (NBN) on Friday, NBN CEO Stephen Rue said the company sees its satellite coverage as being very helpful in the future.
"We are very conscious that these climatic conditions are likely to continue and indeed to get worse, and we're conscious that as a network we need to test our resiliency, make sure that we have a network that can either recover quickly or is backed up in some way," Rue told the committee conducting an inquiry into the business case for the NBN and the experiences of small businesses.
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Friday, 28 February 2020 03:20
Labor up in arms over govt plans for a ‘broadband tax' and cuts to regional NBN investment
The Labor Party is pressuring the Federal Government to explain why it is reportedly introducing a $7 per month broadband tax on 1 July, while cutting regional NBN investment at the same time.
Referring to reports that detail a decision by NBN Co to cut regional funding by $200 million, and what it claims are “attempts to conceal this by omitting key information from the 2020 Corporate Plan”, Labor's Shadow Communications Minister Michelle Rowland said if the fixed-wireless network needed upgrading, “why was $200 million worth of capital investment in that network cut even after broadband tax revenues were factored into the NBN budget?”
“This comes as reports also reveal NBN Co is now chasing taxpayer-funded grants to upgrade parts of the fixed wireless network before the rollout is even complete,” she said.
“Whether it’s broadband or energy, the Coalition is driving up prices, playing politics with technology, and misleading regional Australians.
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NBN Co upgrades network gear software after Sky Muster faults skyrocket
January 2020 outage impacted more users than reported.
NBN Co is upgrading the software on network equipment used for its Sky Muster service following a sharp rise in the number of network faults recorded over the past six months.
The company overnight released numbers on the performance of its satellite network in January, a month in which it had a near two-day outage impacting some users.
Across the whole of January 2020, NBN Co recorded 22 satellite network faults, well above the six it saw on the network in July and August last year.
The company produced a graph showing the number of faults had risen consistently over the past six months, as had the “average” time needed to resolve them, which is now almost 2.5 hours.
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https://www.itnews.com.au/news/telstra-stops-offering-100mbps-services-for-nbn-fttn-b-c-users-538601
Telstra stops offering 100Mbps services for NBN FTTN/B/C users
New signups are now limited to 50Mbps.
Telstra has stopped offering 100Mbps services to users in NBN Co’s fibre-to-the-node, curb and basement footprints.
The cease of sale, which was first reported by CommsDay, means that users of FTTN, FTTB and FTTC can only sign up to a maximum 50Mbps plan when connecting through Telstra.
“We have made a decision to only offer premium speed (NBN100) on FTTP [fibre-to-the-premises] and HFC [hybrid fibre coaxial] for the time being,” a Telstra spokesperson confirmed to iTnews.
“The reason for this is because a number of our customers on FTTN/B/C do not have connections that are capable of achieving 100Mbps.
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NBN Co pleads for cash to help fixed wireless, satellite refugees
'Least cost to the taxpayer' rollout not enough for hospitals, schools already needing upgrades.
NBN Co has conceded - before its network is even complete - that some businesses, schools and hospitals outside the fixed-line footprint already require network upgrades to meet "emerging" needs.
In a damning assessment of the “least cost to the taxpayer” model it has been forced by the Coalition government to use, NBN Co said it already has a list of premises it wants to move out of fixed wireless or satellite and into fixed-line - but no spare cash to do so.
It is pitching for $53 million in federal grants soon to be on offer through a regional connectivity program, and matched (or greater) co-contributions from other tiers of government, to follow through.
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Enjoy!
David.
