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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Amazing revelation this week that data in the #myHR has a high rubbish quotient. Who knew?
Another week of leaks and ransoms all over and the usual quantum of rubbish ADHA stats!
Oh and there was a Budget when Scotty from Marketing – not knowing any better – decided to spend some of our-hard- earned of a major tech looser the #myHR
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https://wildhealth.net.au/more-than-20-of-mhr-shared-health-summary-data-is-likely-garbage/
13 May 2021
More than 20% of MHR shared health summary data is likely garbage
A Department of Health audit of GP uploaded shared health summaries reveals that the state of My Health Record data integrity may be a lot worse than people think
Earlier this month the Department of Health (DoH) took its new data matching powers out for its first test drive in the form of an audit of all GP practices which upload shared health summaries to the My Health Record (MHR) as part of the ePIP, and what it found wasn’t pretty.
1106 practices which were paid ePiP last quarter ended up being denied the payment this quarter after DoH data matched records with the Australian Digital Health Agency (ADHA) and found that these practices had “not met the shared health summary upload requirements for a payment quarter under the Practice Incentives Program eHealth Incentive (ePIP)”. Overall, about 5300 practices are uploading summaries.
The good news is that the department has provided quite a bit of information for those practices which have missed out this quarter on what to do to make sure they get in line for next quarter, so the problem is likely to go away over time for those practices affected. If you’re interested in that detail you can start HERE.
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ADHA claims addition of over 200,000 My Health Records in a year
While a large percentage of eligible individuals aged over 80 have a My Health Record, so do 91% of those in their 20s.
By Asha Barbaschow | May 10, 2021 -- 05:58 GMT (15:58 AEST) | Topic: Innovation
The number of Australians with a My Health Record has grown by about 200,000 in the last 12 months, with the number of accounts reaching 22.91 million as of February this year.
Of those nearly-23 million, the age bracket with the most take up is comprised of those aged over 80, with 99% of those eligible possessing an online medical file.
Revealed in a response to questions on notice from the latest round of Senate Estimates, the Australian Digital Health Agency (ADHA) disclosed the age bracket with the second highest percentage of uptake was those aged 20-29, with 91% of Medicare-eligible individuals in this bracket possessing a My Health Record.
90% of Medicare-eligible individuals aged 70-79 have a My Health Record, and so do 88% of those aged 10-19 and 30-39, respectively. Those in other age groups with a My Health Record represent 85% to 87% of all eligible individuals in each of the brackets.
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https://www.ausdoc.com.au/news/doctors-told-patients-may-have-had-10-times-intended-drug-dose
Doctors told patients may have had 10 times intended drug dose
SA Health CEO Chris McGowan says a review is underway into a software glitch that added an extra digit on hospital scripts
10th May 2021
Doctors at several large public hospitals have been warned that their patients may have received 10 times their medication dose in error after a software upgrade caused a “serious” computer glitch.
An urgent memo was sent to clinicians at at least three SA hospitals on Wednesday night, warning them of problems with the Sunrise electronic medical records system, according to a statement from the Nursing and Midwifery Federation.
The “serious” issues added an extra digit to prescription orders, and had the potential to impact patient safety, the federation said.
The memo was sent to staff at hospitals including the Royal Adelaide Hospital, Queen Elizabeth Hospital and the Noarlunga Hospital.
“This issue can result in the last digit of the medication dose being duplicated prior to order submission, for example, 10mg may display as 100mg, 15mg may display as 155mg,” the memo said.
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Monday, 10 May 2021 20:12
ACMA: Telehealth and video conferencing surge during COVID-19
Since COVID-19 restrictions were introduced in March last year, more online Australians have increased their use of telehealth consultations and video conferencing/calling.
The data has been published in the ACMA's latest interactive report, “Communications and media in Australia: How we use the internet”, with the direct link to the interactive report here.
It shows the ways Australians are using the internet, including devices we use to connect, how often we go online, and the activities and services we engage with.
The report reveals 99% of Australians were online in 2020, up from 90% in 2019. The biggest increase was by those aged 55 and over.
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Tyro buys Medipass health payment app from NAB Ventures
James Eyers Senior Reporter
May 10, 2021 – 5.19pm
Tyro will acquire Medipass Solutions from NAB Ventures and its other shareholders for $22.5 million, in a deal that points to Tyro’s ambition to expand in the $120 billion national health market.
Medipass has built a cardless, terminal-less, digital health payments platform that connects health providers, patients and insurers with the claims and payment processes. It is used by around 4400 healthcare providers.
It will now be integrated with the Tyro terminals medical professionals use to take card payments. Around 9300 merchants use Tyro and the health vertical makes up 25 per cent of its total transactions, and 11 per cent of Tyro’s transaction value, or $1.3 billion in the first half of the 2021 financial year.
Tyro shares jumped 6.1 per cent on Monday to $3.63 after the deal was announced and Tyro said it would issue 2.4 million new shares to partly fund the deal. Consideration will be paid 60 per cent in cash and 40 per cent in Tyro shares.
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Software Developer Community Announcement
eSignature v1.1
The Australian Digital Health Agency has released version 1.1 of the eSignature end product.
This release of the eSignature end product includes summary guidance to the requirements for electronic signatures on low risk clinical communications including referrals and requests for Medicare-funded services.
For a more detailed description of the changes, please refer to the Release Note.
Who does this affect?
- Developers and implementers of clinical information systems
- Developers and implementers of secure messaging systems
More Information
eSignature v1.1 is available for download from the Developer Centre:
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https://wildhealth.net.au/doh-test-drives-new-data-matching-powers/
13 May 2021
DoH test drives new data matching powers
Analytics Big Data DoH Payment
If your accountant is constantly warning you about the ATO and its ever widening powers of data matching, then if you’re a healthcare provider, you’ve now got a similar set of problems
Big Brother has officially arrived in healthcare in the form of genuine data matching powers across departments to reveal inconsistencies in healthcare provider management, claiming and funding.
The legislation to clear the way for such the Department of Health (DoH) to conduct such sophisticated and automated prying was passed nearly two years ago, with not a great deal of fuss, at that time.
The first use of the powers however were only made apparent earlier this month when the DoH decided to analyse healthcare summary upload data submitted directly by GP practices to the Australian Digital Health Agency (ADHA) against criteria for a compliant upload, and more than 20% of practices failed the criteria.
As a result 20% of GP practices were denied their ePIP payment for last quarter. Back of envelope calculations suggests that amounts to more than $6.5m in payments to just over 1,000 GP practices.
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APS6 Clinical Safety Lead - Sydney / Brisbane / Canberra
Randstad - Healthcare
Job Type : Full Time
Job Description
CLINICAL SAFETY LEAD - Australian Digital Health Agency - Sydney/Brisbane/Canberra
Australian Digital Health Agency (ADHA) is responsible for national digital health services and systems, with a focus on engagement, innovation, clinical quality, and safety. Their focus is on putting data and technology safely to work for patients, consumers, and the healthcare professionals who look after them.
ABOUT THE ROLE:
This role is responsible for managing the clinical safety of Agency products such as My Health Record and specifications such as Electronic Prescribing.
The Clinical Safety Lead works collaboratively with a broad range of stakeholders and assists with identifying and managing clinical hazards and risks inherent to digital health products and services. Duties include:
- Contributing to the design and development of Agency products
- Conducting systems safety analysis through design, development, testing, implementation, and changes throughout the product lifecycle
- Addressing clinical risks & providing clinical safety advice on issues impacting National digital infrastructure
- Contributing to ongoing reviews of the clinical safety management approach
- Educating & managing stakeholders to support awareness of clinical governance principles in order to achieve clinical safety management
- Producing high-quality clinical safety reports
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Tuesday, 11 May 2021 11:20
Black Dog Institute and SAS optimising mental health hub for frontline workers
The Black Dog Institute's mental health platform tailored to frontline healthcare workers - TEN - was built with the analytical power of SAS and has reached 33,000 Australian healthcare professionals. However, its continued funding now rests on the result of the 2021-22 federal budget.
COVID-19 has hit everyone hard, and frontline healthcare workers are no exception, with relentless demands and pressures affecting their mental wellbeing in their professional and personal life. As part of its $74 million package to support the mental and health and wellbeing of all Australians, the Commonwealth Department of Health funded the Black Dog Institute to develop an online support platform tailored to these workers. This was released as The Essential Network, or TEN.
TEN providers tools and resources to frontline healthcare workers helping them cope with, and manage, stress, burnout, anxiety, depression, and other mental health conditions. TEN was launched in two weeks, in its first iteration, and has since reached 33,000 healthcare professionals Australia-wide.
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Intelicare secures investors' A$2.5M commitment to scale commercialisation
Thiru Gunasegaran | 10 May 2021
Intelicare, an Australian technology company serving the aged care sector, has received binding commitments to raise A$2.5 million from both new and existing investors.
The amount will be raised through a two-tranche placement. On the first tranche, it will place 9.6 million new shares at A$0.26 apiece and on the second, it will offer a free attaching option, which is priced at A$0.50 per share, for every two shares purchased. The latter is still subject to shareholders' approval.
WHAT THEY DO
Intelicare develops both hardware and software systems using predictive analytics for the aged care sector. Its solutions are built on a proprietary Internet of Things platform utilising smart sensors and artificial intelligence.
The company's flagship InteliLiving solution tracks an individual's daily routine through smart sensors and informs their carer of any irregular movement. Intelicare states that it can detect and prevent falls and health issues before they happen. The product's capabilities are expanded into the InteliCare Pro system which is being used in hospitals, clinics and aged
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https://www.ausdoc.com.au/news/gps-get-good-rap-telehealth
GPs get a good rap for telehealth
Phone consults are a ‘new standard’ of care but only when the doctor and patient already have a therapeutic relationship, shows an Australian survey
11th May 2021
Patients are "pretty impressed" with the telehealth arrangements introduced when the pandemic started, shows an Australian survey.
The poll shows patients with complex care needs are keen to keep consulting their regular GP by phone when a physical examination is not needed, and the appointment isn't too complex.
The research of 30 patients aged 55-88 at nine Adelaide practices aimed to find out if telehealth met their healthcare needs during the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic.
All but one patient believed their ongoing care and health checks had been managed well thanks to telehealth, found the researchers from Flinders University, SA.
One elderly woman labelled it a "new standard" of care and another patient with cancer who required investigations admitted they would have been “lost” without telehealth.
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https://www1.racgp.org.au/newsgp/professional/telehealth-valued-by-ndis-participants
Telehealth valued by NDIS participants
The service, which will soon become a permanent part of Australian primary care, has been welcomed by vulnerable patients.
11 May 2021
The expansion of telehealth during COVID-19 has been
embraced by GPs
and patients
alike.
And while the positive impacts are widespread across specific patient groups,
it has been particularly beneficial for vulnerable populations, such as those
accessing the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS).
Despite earlier
challenges faced by both participants and healthcare professionals in
accessing the scheme, a recent survey
of 2391 NDIS participants found 63% have been able to successfully receive
supports and move their NDIS-funded allied healthcare services to videoconference
or telephone.
The research, stemming from a collaboration between the National Disability
Insurance Agency (NDIA) and the University of Melbourne, analysed participants’
and family/carers’ experiences accessing and receiving supports via telehealth
video and phone consultations, as well as dealing with the NDIS during the
pandemic.
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https://www.miragenews.com/pharmacists-more-prepared-for-covid-19-vaccine-559475/
May 13, 2021 1:05 pm AEST
Pharmacists more prepared for COVID-19 vaccine roll out thanks to Australian Digital Health Agency’s support
Pharmaceutical Society of Australia
The Pharmaceutical Society of Australia (PSA) extends thanks to the Australian Digital Health Agency for their support of the recent COVID-19 Roadshow Series.
In recent weeks, the PSA has conducted workshops across Australia’s capital cities to provide pharmacists with the latest information on pharmacist-delivered COVID-19 vaccines and supporting patients with questions and addressing vaccine hesitancy.
Digital tools enabling better and safer care was a key feature of the conversation, including uploading to the Australian Immunisation Register (AIR), efficient ways for viewing vaccine histories, including through the Clinical Vaccine Integrated Platform (CVIP).
Positive feedback was also received regarding improvements to My Health Record (MHR), whilst many showed a keen interest in the best ways to access safe and appropriate care.
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https://www.miragenews.com/patient-immunisation-details-now-more-easily-559267/
May 13, 2021 8:18 am AEST
Patient immunisation details now more easily available to healthcare providers
Australian Digital Health Agency
Australian healthcare providers now have an improved and consolidated view of their patients’ immunisation details through My Health Record.
This is important as the world continues to face the ongoing challenges of COVID-19 and shows how the national digital health system can support the response to both this and future pandemics.
Australian Digital Health Agency Chief Clinical Adviser, Dr Steve Hambleton, said the latest update to the system makes it much easier to see patient immunisation information.
“As a GP I can quickly and easily see my patients’ immunisation details, including their COVID-19 vaccination status or their children’s National Immunisation Program status, without having to go through time-consuming logins for separate systems. This is one of the great benefits of My Health Record,” he said.
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Budget 2021–22: Generational change and record investment in the health of Australians
A joint media release outlining the Morrison Government's $121.4 billion in 2021–22 and $503 billion investment into the health of Australians over the next four years.
11 May 2021
Media type: Media release
Audience: General public
The Morrison Government is investing a record $121.4 billion in 2021–22 and $503 billion over the next four years, providing more support to Australians as we face some of the greatest health challenges in a generation.
Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020, we have committed over $25 billion towards our COVID-19 health response. This includes measures in the 2021–22 Budget, including $1.1 billion to extend our COVID-19 health response to support Australians throughout the pandemic, and $1.9 billion to drive the COVID-19 vaccine rollout, to ensure everyone in Australia will have the opportunity to be vaccinated.
In addition we are extending COVID-19 health measures by investing $204.6 million to extend telehealth arrangements until 31 December 2021, bringing total investment to date to $3.6 billion, which continues to provide access to health services for all Australians regardless of where they live.
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https://www.zdnet.com/article/budget-2021-digital-mental-health-services-to-see-au110m-injection/
Budget 2021: Digital mental health services to see AU$110m injection
Australia's mental health system will receive a AU$2.3 billion investment package as part of this year's federal Budget, with a portion to go into expanding digital mental health services while another will go into extending financial support for telehealth services until the end of the year.
By Campbell Kwan | May 11, 2021 -- 11:28 GMT (21:28 AEST) | Topic: Digital Health and Wellness
The Australian government will provide AU$111.2 million over four years to expand and enhance the nation's digital mental health services to provide Australians with easier access to high quality digital mental health services.
The decision to allocate funds into expanding digital mental services was made to ensure Australians are able to quickly access appropriate care, Budget documents say. The funding is part of a larger AU$2.3 billion package dedicated specifically for expanding Australia's mental health and suicide prevention services.
"The AU$2.3 billion package in this Budget is a first step to responding to recommendations from the Productivity Commission and the National Suicide Prevention Adviser. With this commitment to Australians' mental health, the government is laying the foundations for systemic, whole-of-government reform to deliver preventative, compassionate, and effective care," the government said.
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E-invoicing push includes five-day payment guarantee
Tom Burton Government editor
May 11, 2021 – 7.31pm
Federal government suppliers that provide electronic invoices will be guaranteed to be paid within five days or be paid interest.
The budget commits $15.3 million to support the Treasury and the Australian Peppol E-Invoicing Authority to accelerate e-invoicing.
They will work with the large payment platforms (EFTPOS, Visa, Mastercard and the Reserve Bank’s New Payments Platform Australia) to integrate e-invoicing into the main payment methods used by business to help businesses get paid faster.
According to budget documents, Australian businesses exchange more than 1.2 billion invoices each year. About 90 per cent of invoices still manual.
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'Significant' ransomware attack forces Ireland's health service to shut down IT systems
IT systems for Ireland's health service have been taken offline as a "precaution" and some outpatient appointments have been cancelled.
By Danny Palmer | May 14, 2021 -- 10:29 GMT (20:29 AEST) | Topic: Security
Ireland's health service has taken all of its IT systems offline as a precaution after what the organisation describes as a "significant" ransomware attack.
The Health Service Executive (HSE), which is responsible for healthcare and social services across all of Ireland, said it had shut down all IT systems as a "precaution" in order to protect the network from a ransomware attack.
"There is a significant ransomware attack on the HSE IT systems. We have taken the precaution of shutting down all our IT systems in order to protect them from this attack and to allow us fully assess the situation with our own security partners," HSE said on Twitter.
"We apologise for inconvenience caused to patients and to the public and will give further information as it becomes available."
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https://www.innovationaus.com/ransomware-and-phishing-drive-data-breach-spike/
Ransomware and phishing drive data breach spike
Joseph
Brookes
Senior Reporter
13 May 2021
Phishing and ransomware attacks spiked in the last year leading to a growing number of data breaches, according to analysis of more than 29,000 security incidents.
Australian governments and businesses were among 83 organisations to contribute to Verizon’s latest Data Breach Investigations Report, now in its 14th iteration.
The latest report found 5,258 of the incidents analysed, or around 18 per cent, resulted in a confirmed data breach.
The analysis found a human element is present in almost every breach, and most involve users’ credentials. Financial services and health organisations were heavily targeted, in line with incidents reported to Australia’s mandatory notifiable data breach scheme last year.
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https://www.hinz.org.nz/news/565309/Health-sector-reports-highest-number-of-privacy-breaches.htm
Health sector reports highest number of privacy breaches
Wednesday, 12 May 2021
NEWS - eHealthNews.nz editor Rebecca McBeth
Health care and social assistance is the industry reporting the highest number of serious privacy breaches since the new Privacy Act came into force.
The Office of the Privacy Commissioner (OPC) received a 97 percent increase in privacy breach notifications in the first four months of the new Act, compared to the previous six months.
OPC is marking Privacy Week (10-14 May 2021), by publishing its first stocktake of privacy breach reporting after the Privacy Act changed on 1 December 2020.
Under the new Act, organisations or businesses which experience a privacy breach that has caused, or has the potential to cause serious harm, must now report it to the Privacy Commissioner. They can do this by using OPC’s online NotifyUs reporting tool.
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Major US pipeline struggles to reopen after ransomware attack
· AFP
The largest fuel pipeline system in the United States remained largely shut down on Sunday, two days after a major ransomware attack was detected, its operating company said.
Colonial, based in the southern state of Georgia, is the largest pipeline operator in the United States by volume, normally transporting 2.5 million barrels of gasoline, diesel fuel, jet fuel and other refined petroleum products per day.
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DarkSide, ransom group linked to Colonial Pipeline hack, new but not amateur
By Raphael Satter
May 10, 2021 — 7.17am
Washington: The ransomware group linked to the extortion attempt that has snared fuel deliveries across the US East Coast may be new, but that doesn’t mean its hackers are amateurs.
Who precisely is behind the disruptive intrusion into Colonial Pipeline hasn’t been made officially known and digital attribution can be tricky, especially early on in an investigation. A former US official and two industry sources have told Reuters that the group DarkSide is among the suspects.
Cybersecurity experts who have tracked DarkSide said it appears to be composed of veteran cybercriminals who are focused on squeezing out as much money as they can from their targets.
“They’re very new but they’re very organised,” Lior Div, the chief executive of Boston-based security firm Cybereason, said on Sunday.
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CBA acquires digital healthcare services directory Whitecoat
The bank sees the acquisition as a way to enhance digital services and experiences for its customers.
May 10, 2021 11:56 PM
The Commercial Bank of Australia has bought Whitecoat, Australia's largest digital healthcare services directory, to expand its presence in the healthcare sector.
WHY IT MATTERS
Whitecoat connects patients with more than 300,000 health service providers. They can also make payments and claims on the platform.
The acquisition supports the company's focus on healthcare as a "growth sector and a strategic priority to provide the best digital services and experiences to its customers," according to Mike Vacy-Lyle, CBA Group executive for business banking.
In addition, the commercial bank will integrate the digital payments and claims solution into practice management platforms for healthcare practitioners. This in turn will increase efficiency through streamlined back-office administration, practice management software integrations, payment reconciliations, real-time reporting, and the ability to process various claims.
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https://www.itwire.com/telecoms-and-nbn/nbn-co-successfully-trials-infinera-xr-optics.html
Thursday, 13 May 2021 17:52
NBN Co successfully trials Infinera XR optics
NBN Co has completed a successful proof of concept of Infinera's XR optics point-to-multipoint coherent optical technology.
According to Infinera, the trial demonstrated XR optics' compatibility within the NBN transit network, and showed it could simplify transport network architecture while reducing capital and operating expenses.
XR optics is said to provide multiple 100Gbps of capacity divided into discrete subcarriers, allowing dynamic capacity management and optical capacity optimisation.
"The NBN transit network is our national backbone, supporting the growing data needs of Australians as they rely more on broadband for their work, education, social and entertainment needs," said NBN Co CTO Ray Owen.
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Wednesday, 12 May 2021 07:40
NBN Co technicians walk off the job nation-wide in ongoing protest
More than 600 technicians employed by the NBN Co, the company rolling out Australia's national broadband network, will walk off the job on Wednesday as part of a national day of action.
This means that any installations or repairs scheduled for the day cannot go ahead. The workers want the Federal Government to set up a Parliamentary inquiry to look into issues which they say are plaguing the NBN Co.
The Australia-wide strike comes after action to protest about a number of issues. These include "cuts to sub-contractors' pay rates, an Uber-style job booking app causing chaos for workers and consumers, pyramid sham contracting arrangements and the NBN rollout debacle", the union representing the workers said in a statement.
In February, it was reported that the executive staff at the company were paid $78 million in bonuses for 2020, almost double the $43 million paid in 2019. Australia experienced a recession in 2020, due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
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https://www.itnews.com.au/news/nbn-co-whittles-govt-loan-down-to-139bn-564420
NBN Co whittles govt loan down to $13.9bn
By Ry Crozier on May 11, 2021 11:02PM
Budget 2021: Makes a second repayment.
NBN Co has paid off an additional $2.6 billion of its government loan, leaving a balance of $13.9 billion to be refinanced by mid-2024.
The company paid off its first $3 billion at the end of last year, and budget documents [pdf] show that it made a further payment this month.
“The Australian Government has provided a loan of $19.5 billion to NBN Co, on commercial terms, which was fully drawn in July 2020,” budget documents state.
“The loan was established in December 2016 and must be repaid in full by 30 June 2024.
“$3 billion was repaid in December 2020 and a further $2.6 billion was repaid in May 2021, with an outstanding balance of $13.9 billion expected as at 30 June 2021.”
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China lands on Mars in latest advance for its space program
Updated May 15, 2021 — 11.15amfirst published at 11.02am
Beijing: China has landed a spacecraft on Mars for the first time in the latest advance for its space program.
The official Xinhua News Agency said on Saturday that the lander had touched down, citing the China National Space Administration.
The Tianwen-1 spacecraft landed on a site on the Southern Utopia Plain, an icy area, “leaving a Chinese footprint on Mars for the first time,” Xinhua said.
A rover, named Zhurong, will now survey the landing site before departing from its platform to conduct inspections.
Tianwen-1, or “Questions to Heaven”, after a Chinese poem written two millennia ago, is China’s first independent mission to Mars. A probe co-launched with Russia in 2011 failed to leave the Earth’s orbit.
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Enjoy!
David.
