Quote Of The Year

Timeless Quotes - Sadly The Late Paul Shetler - "Its not Your Health Record it's a Government Record Of Your Health Information"

or

H. L. Mencken - "For every complex problem there is an answer that is clear, simple, and wrong."

Tuesday, August 17, 2021

Commentators and Journalists Weigh In On Digital Health And Related Privacy, Safety, Social Media And Security Matters. Lots Of Interesting Perspectives - August 17, 2021.

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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! Its 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.mondaq.com/unitedstates/healthcare/1101830/vital-signs-digital-health-law-update-summer-2021

Worldwide: Vital Signs: Digital Health Law Update | Summer 2021

13 August 2021

by Alexis S. Gilroy (Washington, DC) , Jörg Hladjk (Brussels), Laura Koman (Washington, DC), Kimberly Lovett Rockwell (Boston), Cristiana Spontoni (Brussels), Benjamin O. Lang (Tokyo) and Chiang Ling Li (Hong Kong)

Jones Day

NOTE FROM THE EDITORS

The "dog days of summer" certainly provide a welcome, if brief, break in the extremely rapid pace of statutory, regulatory, and various other policy and industry efforts applicable to digital health. Just in time for us to collectively catch up on the impacts of the recent actions.

As is the hallmark of our Vital Signs effort to bring you this curated, one-stop resource quarterly on the most notable digital health law updates from our contributors globally, the level of activity during the past quarter has truly outpaced any to date. As the volume and breadth of topics identified below indicate, digital health policy is a "KEY HEALTH POLICY TOPIC" in most jurisdictions, so stay alert as changes continue, and we collectively seek to understand and apply these new policies to innovative digital health offerings.

Given that we wanted to make room for some notable multinational developments, we are taking a break from Industry Insights in this issue, but we will be back with more in the future. In the meantime, it may be a good time to revisit some of our prior, yet very relevant, Industry Insights features on Digital Health Dealmaking: Challenges and Opportunities, The Intersection between Telehealth and Fraud, Abuse, and Enforcement, and IP Protection for Virtual Health Treatment Modalities.

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https://www.smh.com.au/business/entrepreneurship/how-hotdoc-helped-millions-of-younger-australians-get-vaxxed-20210810-p58hga.html

How HotDoc helped millions of younger Australians get vaxxed

By Emma Koehn

August 13, 2021 — 11.35am

If you looked at a list of the top iPhone apps downloaded in Australia last week, you might have come across something unusual. Sitting at No.5 — ahead of the likes of viral video platform Tiktok, streaming video player Disney+ and fast good giant McDonald’s — was HotDoc, a previously little-known medical appointment booking service founded by a doctor from Melbourne.

HotDoc shot to prominence over the past few months as younger Australians figured out it allowed them to find GPs offering doses of the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine and book in for a jab, a realisation many went on to share on social media or in group chats. It can also be used to book with GPs offering the Pfizer vaccine.

More than 4 million people have now used the platform to book in for a COVID-19 shot. And remarkably, the sudden surge of interest in HotDoc comes despite the company being knocked back by both the federal and Victorian governments in their respective vaccine rollout tenders.

Chief executive Ben Hurst says his company has become a “pretty important ingredient” in the national vaccine rollout. “A big part of the vaccine rollout is making it easy for patients to book. We have been able to harness our strengths. And I guess more recently, that has helped a lot of young people,” he says.

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https://www.theaustralian.com.au/nation/politics/data-deal-denial-thwarts-nsw-plans-for-covid-passport/news-story/20831cf23d9e13c06b529b08eb3e496c

Data deal denial thwarts NSW plans for Covid passport

Chris Griffith

11:07PM August 12, 2021

The NSW government’s plan to include a Covid vaccination certificate within the Service NSW app has been thwarted after the federal government refused to share necessary health data.

The Service NSW app is used for accessing a series of state-based services such as renewing registrations and checking fines and demerit points. As with similar apps in other states, it is used for Covid QR code check-ins and has been used to distribute $25 food and entertainment vouchers to residents.

In February, NSW Minister for Customer Service Victor Dominello told The Australian he wanted to include a Covid vaccination passport in the app.

He said the federal government would obviously control the Covid vaccination register, but he believed NSW citizens should be allowed to download a vaccination certificate to the Service NSW platform as a secure asset.

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https://www.innovationaus.com/nsw-may-add-vaccine-record-to-service-nsw-app/

NSW may add vaccine record to Service NSW app

Ben Grubb
Editor

The NSW government is exploring whether it can integrate federal COVID-19 immunisation records into its Service NSW app.

The potential integration comes as it also moves ahead with its plan to have a digital birth certificate prototype ready by the end of the year.

Once NSW begins to open up after lockdown, it’s expected some types of venues will require patrons to provide proof of vaccination in addition to checking in via a QR code, on top of requiring ID if they’re an establishment like a nightclub. This type of experience is already required in some countries overseas that have begun opening up.

NSW Customer Service Minister Victor Dominello with a prototype of a digital birth certificate.

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https://www.innovationaus.com/angelene-falk-reappointed-as-privacy-tsar/

Angelene Falk reappointed as privacy tsar

Ben Grubb
Editor

Angelene Falk will spend at least another three years in her role as Australian Information and Privacy Commissioner after Attorney-General Michaelia Cash confirmed her reappointment.

Ms Falk’s re-appointment through to August 2024 comes as the government searches for a Freedom of Information Commissioner after it provided $1 million in funding in the May budget to establish the position, and as the nation’s Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC) battles an ever-growing freedom-of-information case backlog.

As established in 2010, the OAIC was meant to have three separate commissioners – for information, privacy and freedom of information. But Coalition funding cuts in 2015 left just a privacy commissioner to perform all of these roles, which has remained the case in the years since, with Ms Falk currently serving in all three roles.

On Friday, as the OAIC announced it was investigating Optus, the government announced Ms Falk’s re-appointment.

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https://www.lexology.com/library/detail.aspx?g=086e0e29-be69-4ff4-9b59-42a68ec59666

Mandatory Internet of Things (IoT) Device regulations on the horizon

Gilbert + Tobin - Lesley SuttonSimon BurnsMichael CaplanMelissa FaiTim GoleAndrew Hii and Sheila McGregor

Australia August 10 2021

Consumer 'Internet of Things' (IoT) devices, also known as smart devices, are products that have the added functionality to connect to the internet (e.g. smart lightbulbs, smart TVs, smart watches) and equipment that actually connects the devices to the internet (like Wi-Fi routers). These devices are present in many aspects of our lives, and their security is a significant issue for both consumers and businesses to be aware of. In 2019, almost half of Australian organisations had implemented at least one IoT solution, and in 2020, over 60% of Australian households had adopted at least one IoT device. Globally, cyber attacks on IoT devices have increased, almost tripling in 2019 when compared to the previous year.

In September 2020, the Australian Government implemented its voluntary, principles-based Code of Practice: Securing the Internet of Things for Consumers (IoT Code). At the time we questioned the sufficiency of a voluntary code, given that other jurisdictions, such as the UK and the US have adopted mandatory cyber security standards for IoT devices. The Government has now indicated that a shift towards a mandatory standard is on the horizon in Australia, with the publishing of its discussion paper on 13 July 2021: Strengthening Australia’s cyber security regulations and incentives (Discussion Paper), opening consultation on regulatory reform to strengthen cyber security standards and inviting stakeholders to make submissions.

Shift towards a mandatory IoT standard

The shift towards favouring a mandatory IoT standard is likely the result of industry research conducted by the Department of Industry, Science, Energy and Resources and Department of Home Affairs in March 2021 (six months after the voluntary code was released), which found that the voluntary, principles-based IoT Code was largely failing in achieving its objectives. The research, which is set out in Annex A of the Discussion Paper, found that major manufacturers had not been basing decision-making on the IoT Code, and expressed difficulty in meeting the requirements of the IoT Code, suggesting a preference for following internationally aligned standards. Lower-cost manufacturers were also not engaging with the IoT Code. Moreover, even those manufacturers that attempted to follow the IoT Code were facing difficulties implementing 'low cost, high priority' parts of the IoT Code, like implementing a vulnerability disclosure policy.

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https://www.lexology.com/library/detail.aspx?g=227d980a-4d71-48d2-bd03-e1c4d5e45c73

Why we should be concerned about the rapid roll-out of vaccination certificates

Gilbert + Tobin - Peter Waters

Australia August 10 2021

In June 2021, Bruce Springsteen announced that he would only perform to an audience that could provide proof of full vaccination status. A month later, when probed about the topic, Eric Clapton declared he “will not perform on any stage where there is a discriminated audience present.”

The differing personal beliefs of our Rock and Roll Hall of Famers is just a microcosm of an issue hotly debated by mainstream media and academic discourse.

Governments around the world are hastily rolling out COVID-19 vaccination status certifications. An apparent win-win for citizens desperate for things to “return to normal” and the reactivation of a dampened global economy, the esteemed Ada Lovelace Institute (the Institute) asks governments to consider:

  1. Is this the right solution at the present time; and
  2. If it is the right solution, how can we ensure these programs are designed to best protect our safety and rights?

Certificates, passports, or green passes…?

As governments contemplate how the post-Pandemic world works, an obvious solution comes to mind: an official document that proves a vaccination status. This is known as a vaccination certificate.

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https://stayhappening.com/e/my-digital-health-record-E3LUSKG68HBB

My Digital Health Record

Tue Aug 17 2021 at 10:00 am to 12:00 pm UTC+08:00

Bayswater Library | Bayswater

Publisher/HostCity of Bayswater ADHA Propaganda

Find out more about the Federal Government's new My Health Record.
About this Event

Learn how to access your new My Health Record, and why it's important to keep it up to date. You will learn how to manage your My Health Record to share the information you want with your healthcare providers.

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https://www.theaustralian.com.au/nation/politics/fraudster-concerns-over-fake-covid19-vaccine-passes/news-story/27dbf4836dc7b667f9795ee56830df5f

Fraudster concerns over fake Covid-19 vaccine passes

Liam Mendes

8:13PM August 10, 2021

International fraudsters are selling fake Australian Covid certificates for as little as $120, claiming they are identical to the real ­certificates and that they will never reveal the identities of their clients.

One online counterfeiter told The Australian they had already fulfilled more than 200 orders for Australians keen to subvert the nation’s official vaccination database, and had fielded inquiries from at least 900 others.

The fraudsters guaranteed their fake certificates were so convincing and their security protocols so tight that “you’ll be the only one to know that you’ve not been vaccinated”.

Another online operation on a popular forum with almost half a million subscribers said they could provide “100 per cent valid and authentic” vaccine cards and certificates for Australia.

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https://www.smh.com.au/world/north-america/shady-firm-behind-pfizer-astrazeneca-smear-campaign-blocked-on-facebook-20210811-p58hof.html

Shady firm behind Pfizer, AstraZeneca smear campaign blocked on Facebook

By David Klepper

August 11, 2021 — 5.55am

Providence: Facebook says it has removed hundreds of accounts linked to a mysterious advertising agency operating out of Russia that sought to pay social media influencers to smear COVID-19 vaccines made by Pfizer and AstraZeneca.

A network of 65 Facebook accounts and 243 Instagram accounts was traced back to Fazze, an advertising and marketing firm registered in the United Kingdom. Facebook said Fazze’s work was primarily done from Russia on behalf of an unknown client.

The network used fake accounts to spread misleading claims that disparaged the safety of the Pfizer and AstraZeneca vaccines. One claimed AstraZeneca’s shot would turn a person into a chimpanzee. The fake accounts targeted audiences in India, Latin America and, to a lesser extent, the US, using several social media platforms including Facebook and Instagram.

Russia has been actively marketing its COVID-19 vaccine, Sputnik V, abroad in what some analysts see as an effort to score geopolitical points. But Facebook representatives did not speculate on the possible motivation behind the smear campaign.

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https://opengovasia.com/driving-digital-inclusion-across-australia/

Driving Digital Inclusion Across Australia

·         Alita Sharon  ADHA Propaganda

·         August 9, 2021

In the 1980s, when community members at Yarrabah in far north Queensland were fighting for self-determination, they saw the need for Aboriginal health to be in the hands of their own people and the concept of a community-controlled health organisation was born.

Today, the Health Service organisation delivers primary healthcare across the Yarrabah Aboriginal Shire and has been doing so for decades. To mark the International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples on 9 August, the Australian Digital Health Agency has used a series of videos to recognise the Health Service organisation and the Yarrabah community for embracing innovation and the use of technology to deliver better healthcare.

The Director of Clinical Services at the Health Service organisation, a Yued Noongar man from Dandaragan WA, Dr Jason King said one of the fascinating things about Aboriginal culture is that information about the world around them has always been evolving and so communities, almost by second nature, understand the importance of transmitting information from one generation to the next.

“For thousands of years, they’ve been custodians of data and in the 21st Century, with digital health tools at their fingertips, Aboriginal communities have the opportunity to extend their ability to be owners of their own health care,” he said.

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https://wildhealth.net.au/chronic-insomnia-will-digital-health-succeed-when-everything-else-fails/

9 August 2021

Chronic Insomnia – will digital health succeed when everything else fails?

Apps Clinical COVID-19 Technology

By Ben Falkenmire

Marie* was not sleeping properly.

Which is normal sometimes, but not over a period of 12 months. Falling asleep was not the issue, it was the waking in the middle of the night, her mind racing with thoughts and not letting her fall back asleep. 

Headaches and teeth clenching were regular visitors in her working day as a nurse and at night, and constant fatigue ebbed away at her concentration and memory, two vital skills to perform her job and role as mother to three school children.

She could vaguely trace the cause. Covid lockdowns had meant she had added the unwanted job of online classroom teacher for her children’s schooling. The grandparents would usually be on hand to lighten the load, but they had been immobilised by isolation orders. Tension accumulated in her body, and her mind felt more wired than tired. She really needed sleep – a full night’s sleep. But she kept waking in the night in a hyperaroused state, desperately attempting to fall back asleep and desperately failing.

‘Coronasomnia’

While some studies suggest we are sleeping more on average during the pandemic, there is strong evidence that for a proportion of the population, including Marie from NSW, the opposite is true. This pandemic is a tale of the sleepers and the sleep nots.

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https://medicalrepublic.com.au/telstra-buys-medical-director-it-all-changes-from-here/50566

9 August 2021

Telstra buys Medical Director: it all changes from here

By Jeremy Knibbs

At Telstra’s press conference today on the acquisition of Medical Director, one of the journalists on the line awkwardly suggested to Telstra Health’s CEO Mary Foley that she had paid way too much for a company that had lost a lot of its market share and shine over the years.

The price has been reported as $350 million, which would be about 11-15 times profit, and more than double what Affinity private equity paid for the outfit five years ago ($155 million). Its share of the GP market has probably dropped significantly in the past five years, some suggest from a market leading 42% or so, down to as low as 28%.

That journalist wasn’t giving much credit to what would have been a pretty expensive and experienced team doing the due diligence for Telstra. And possiblly hadn’t done much mapping of the possibilities that such an acquisition presented the company.

Yes, it’s a lot. Not out of range in profit multiples for a digital platform group, though, but more importantly, there are plenty of reasons to suggest that if Telstra handles the acquisition in the right way, one day, the price could end up being a bargain price.

There’s a lot to do, of course, but the timing is right, and if Telstra is prepared to invest, which in today’s press conference they confirmed they were specifically in respect to this acquisition, then Medical Director could end up transformative for the business and, in many respects, for large parts of our healthcare system.

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https://www.afr.com/technology/how-your-next-doctor-could-be-a-machine-20210715-p58a18

How your next doctor could be a machine

John Davidson Columnist

Aug 9, 2021 – 12.00pm

Dr Allison Young, an audiologist and researcher at Sydney’s Royal Prince Alfred hospital, is working on modified swim goggles that she hopes one day will be able to feed data into an artificial intelligence algorithm and help diagnose the dizziness disorders suffered by 40 per cent of Australians at some point in their life.

Across town, at Sydney’s Westmead Hospital, Dr Narinder Singh is working on a digital otoscope – the combination of flashlight and magnifying glass that healthcare workers stick in your ears – that uses AI to quickly and accurately diagnose ear diseases among Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children, before the diseases lead to hearing loss.

Helping Siri tell you what the weather’s like outside isn’t the only thing machine learning and artificial intelligence are good at, it’s emerging.

AI machines are good at medicine, too. In fact, it could be the thing they’re best at.

“Medicine is the use case for AI,” says Nicholas Therkelsen, co-founder and CEO of Max Kelsen, a Brisbane-based AI company that builds machine-learning models for industries as wide-ranging as fast-food, car share and healthcare.

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https://www.theaustralian.com.au/business/financial-services/deloittes-data-dynamo-kellie-nuttal-turns-to-digital-twins-to-tame-covid19/news-story/4dcbd0b9cba46e3a7bdb8b0653b03b29

Deloitte's data dynamo Kellie Nuttal turns to ‘digital twins’ to tame Covid-19

Ticky Fullerton

8:34PM August 8, 2021

“When you turn on the news, you just see queues: queues for vaccination, queues for tests. I see data.”

From her office in Brisbane, Dr Kellie Nuttall’s job is to build solutions to wicked problems and Covid-19 ticks the box.

A digital native still in her 30s, Nuttall is one of Deloitte Australia’s youngest partners, promoted under chief executive Adam Powick’s leadership and now the artificial intelligence lead for the firm. For the past nine years, she has been knee-deep in big data analytics and artificial intelligence and more recently data-rich virtual models known as “digital twins”. She says these will give Australia a much-needed boost to get ahead of the curve in the pandemic.

“I see data. I see supply and demand issues that are just waiting to be optimised,” Nuttall tells The Australian.

“Imagine looking at that vaccination and testing system as a whole. We could build the digital twin of it, and we can quickly see where we have supply and where we have demand issues and how we optimise that system. The digital twins can tell us where tomorrow’s bottlenecks are likely to be before they have even occurred. That’s how we can reduce pressure on the system,” she says.

Digital twins use data to understand fiendishly complex and ever-changing environments.

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https://www.lexology.com/library/detail.aspx?g=f39e8fc1-5301-4a7d-8458-2293dc4d1070

mHealth apps and Software as a Medical Device: Running at pace but beware the legal issues

Clayton Utz

Australia August 5 2021

Businesses should ensure that any disclosures and other statements to app users are clear, transparent and not misleading.

Technology is increasingly driving health and wellness initiatives. The rise of Software as a Medical Device (SaMD) and mobile health (mHealth) applications mean that these innovations are firmly entrenched in Australians’ everyday lives. Many such Apps live on our smartphones, watches, tablets and computers.

As more non-traditional market participants enter into the healthcare and wellness sector, those companies need to be keenly aware of the regulatory regimes that impact these highly regulated fields. Privacy, data, competition, consumer and therapeutic goods laws must all be navigated.

Consumer and competition issues associated with "mHealth"

The health and life sciences sector has long recognised the power of data. Set out below is a high-level survey of some of the consumer and competition issues which may arise as mHealth apps increasingly become more important collectors of data for health care companies, and the source of data for commercial insights.

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https://www.lexology.com/library/detail.aspx?g=562dc7f3-27e2-4d4f-ac96-53a74efa5df3

Australian Court determines that an Artificial Intelligence system can be an inventor for the purposes of patent law

DLA Piper

Australia August 5 2021

Artificial Intelligence (AI) and machine learning are increasingly used in the life sciences industry for research and drug discovery, including:

  • finding molecular targets (i.e. molecular structures with which certain APIs interact);
  • finding a “hit” or “lead” (e.g. a “hit” may be found through automated high-throughput screening, allowing identification of candidates for lead structures, which are investigated as a starting point for drug design);
  • drug repurposing;
  • identifying existing drug candidates (including for polypharmacology) by screening existing databases to analyse molecular structures, correlate them with certain properties, and convert them into algorithms;
  • designing new compounds for single targets and polypharmacology by harvesting and integrating information from databases (e.g. that contain information of molecular pathways, crystal structures, binding affinities, drug targets, disease relevance, chemical properties and biological activities);
  • the development of vaccines (including via gene sequencing, and simulations of vaccines to assess likely efficacy);
  • determining the three-dimensional structure of proteins including their folding forms; and
  • for use in clinical trials (e.g. patient selection, detecting the relevant disease/condition, identifying gene targets and biomarkers, predicting the effect of a molecule, and on/off target effects).

This rapid uptake of AI and machine learning in the life sciences industry has raised questions regarding the effects of incorporating such technologies into the inventive process, including the patentability of resulting inventions, to ensure a company’s investments in new drug candidates, methods of treatment, and/or therapeutic uses are protected and rewarded.

In Australia, a first instance decision by Justice Beach of the Federal Court has provided some guidance: pursuant to Thaler v Commissioner of Patents [2021] FCA 879, an AI system can be the named inventor for an Australian patent application, with a person or corporation listed as the applicant for that patent, or a grantee of the patent.

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https://www.hospitalhealth.com.au/content/technology/article/harnessing-the-human-genome-to-personalise-health-care-457999849

Harnessing the human genome to personalise health care

By Jane Allman
Thursday, 05 August, 2021

Genomic sequencing is a valuable tool that can be wielded to improve health outcomes, and it holds great promise for the future of medicine. In recent months we have seen its ability to rapidly identify transmission pathways of COVID-19, which has been vital in our ability to manage outbreaks and track variants. But analysis of the human genome has a bright future in a whole host of medical applications, giving specialists better tools to make treatment decisions for individual patients.

Melbourne-based company GMDx Genomics is blazing pathways towards the future of personalised medicine and the next generation of health care. By extracting valuable information from the whole human genome to obtain a deeper understanding of a particular individual’s immune system, GMDx is translating data into clinical utility.

The company’s clinical-grade analytics platform — backed by big data, powered by Oracle Cloud Infrastructure (OCI) and driven by artificial intelligence — was designed on the foundation of a decade of research and development conducted by Co-founder and Chief Scientific Officer Robyn Lindley.

GMDx CEO Bernie Romanin explained that the platform applies a validated algorithm to extracted subsets of metrics to monitor the Innate Immune Fitness (IIF) of individual patients. Analysis of an individual’s IIF can identify if that person is capable of mounting an effective adaptive immune response.

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https://insightplus.mja.com.au/2021/29/telehealth-harm-or-benefit-for-survivors-of-intimate-partner-violence/

Telehealth: harm or benefit for survivors of intimate partner violence?

Authored by Kelsey Hegarty

Issue 29 / 9 August 2021

SEXUAL and domestic violence has wide-ranging impacts on health and wellbeing, resulting in high attendance of women survivors in health settings. The effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on movement restriction and finances appear to be exacerbating sexual and domestic violence incidence, nature and severity (here and here).

In July 2020, a national survey of 15 000 Australian women showed 4.6% experienced physical or sexual violence, 5.8% coercive control and 11.6% one form of emotionally abusive, harassing or controlling behaviour by a partner in the previous 3 months. For two-thirds of these women the violence started or got worse during the COVID-19 pandemic. Lockdowns enhance social isolation of women and their children, a common tactic that some men use as part of coercive control over partners, enabling more abuse to happen. Recent global updates about how to address domestic violence have highlighted how to respond generally and also in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Safety concerns and barriers to accessing help for survivors have been affected by the closure of many face-to-face services. Health practitioners are the highest level of professional group told about  sexual and domestic violence. To a great extent in Australia, health care during lockdowns has moved to remote consultations through electronic communication (phone or video), often known as telehealth. The Australian Government has supported this financially through Medicare, with the greatest uptake being GP and mental health consultations by telephone. An Australian Bureau of Statistics survey in 2020 showed that telehealth was being used by around one in five patients, with half saying they would use telehealth in the future.

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https://insightplus.mja.com.au/2021/29/framework-for-digital-mental-health-services/

Framework for digital mental health services

Authored by Helen Christensen and colleagues

Issue 29 / 9 August 2021

DIGITAL health has been heralded for many years as an excellent means to extend health services in mental health.

Nearly a year ago, we wrote that COVID-19 offered the opportunity for transformational change in the use of digital health and telehealth by improving access and quality of health care. During the COVID-19 pandemic, there was a ramping up of new digital measures, including extensions of crisis lines, new COVID-19-specific call lines, and the introduction of Medicare-funded telehealth for mental health services. We also saw development of innovative services such as The Essential Network (TEN) service designed to provide support to frontline workers. Following this, the Productivity Commission, the Victorian Royal Commission and the National Suicide Prevention Advisor reports made recommendations about digital reform.

The COVID-19 measures that were introduced in 2020 increased the volume of services available to the community. It appears that demand for these services has increased. A measure of activity is a relatively weak measure of success. It is not yet known if those who visited these services were new patients. It is unclear whether the call centres reduced psychological distress at an individual level, or whether the same levels of distress would be recorded if these services had not been introduced. It is not clear whether they were successful in diverting people in distress from treatment services or that they improved the efficiency of the health services.

Mental health service use data from Lifeline and Beyond Blue and our own web traffic from the Black Dog Institute suggest that call centres and websites experienced increased usage of approximately 15–30% in response to COVID-19. These calls and web traffic continued at a higher than baseline rate for all services and taper and expand in response to lockdowns (here and here). For example, Lifeline is experiencing a 25% increase in the volume of calls Australia-wide since the surge in new COVID-19 cases began this July. a significant increase from pre-COVID-19 levels of approximately 2500 per month, and has again reported an increase in calls in response to the July 2021 lockdowns

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https://www.itwire.com/telecoms-and-nbn/communications-alliance-throws-support-behind-government%E2%80%99s-new-hacking-powers-plans.html

Friday, 06 August 2021 16:10

Communications Alliance throws support behind Government’s new hacking powers plans

By Staff Writer

Telecoms industry peak body Communications Alliance has welcomed the push by the Federal Parliament’s security committee to “rein in” the sweeping new hacking powers proposed to be handed to national security agencies under the Identify and Disrupt Bill.

In the report of its inquiry, the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Intelligence and Security (PJCIS) has recommended 34 amendments to the controversial legislation, which CA says would allow agencies to covertly hack and disrupt the networks, accounts and devices of Australians where there is suspicion of a crime being committed.

The PJCIS recommendations include changes to strengthen the oversight of the activity of agencies, allow for review of how the proposed powers are used and to better protect the privacy of Australians whose devices could be hacked and/or confiscated under the planned new laws.

Communications Alliance CEO, John Stanton, praised the comprehensive nature of the PJCIS scrutiny of the legislation and the fact that the Committee had supported and included several recommendations that were put to the PJCIS by Communications Alliance in its submission to the inquiry on behalf of Australia’s telecommunications sector.

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https://audioboom.com/posts/7920076-dr-andrew-rochford-my-health-record

2NM Breakfast

Dr Andrew Rochford - My Health Record

Aug 9, 7:30 AM  ADHA Propaganda

My Health Record allows you to keep all your important test results safe in one place, which you and your healthcare providers can access at any time to make more informed decisions about your treatment and care.

Dr Andrew Rochford was on the show this morning to talk about the importance of digital health record right now.

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https://www.psa.org.au/practice-support-industry/digital-health-guidelines-for-pharmacists/

Digital Health Guidelines For Pharmacists

About the guidelines  ADHA Propaganda

Purpose

The Digital Health Guidelines for Pharmacists describe the professional obligations of pharmacists when interacting with digital health systems in performing their professional clinical roles. These guidelines provide guidance on expected professional practice when using digital health systems, so that pharmacists can provide optimal patient outcomes, while meeting legal and ethical obligations relating to data access and stewardship. The guidelines should be used as a tool to support practice and professional decision making, and ensure that patients’ needs, beliefs and preferences are met. They can be used as an educational resource to inform quality assurance processes, and provide support when resolving legal disputes and ethical dilemmas.

Scope

The Digital Health Guidelines for Pharmacists are applicable to all settings in which pharmacists practise and interact with digital health, including settings where the pharmacist does not dispense medicines.

Guidelines produced by the Pharmaceutical Society of Australia (PSA) are not definitive statements of correct procedure but represent agreement by experts in the field. The guidelines do not set a prescribed course of action or a mandatory standard to which pharmacists must adhere.

The guidelines do not provide a technical guide on how to operate digital health systems; rather, they provide guidance on the minimum professional and ethical behaviour for pharmacists when using digital health systems in the delivery of health services.

Acknowledgements

Development of the Digital Health Guidelines for Pharmacists has been supported by the Australian Digital Health Agency. This document supersedes the My Health Record Guidelines for Pharmacists (2019), and incorporates much of this previous version. The work to update the guidelines included review by experts, stakeholder feedback, and the consensus of organisations and individuals involved. The Pharmaceutical Society of Australia thanks all those involved in the review process and, in particular, gratefully acknowledges the contribution of the following individuals and organisations.

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https://marketplace.service.gov.au/2/digital-marketplace/opportunities/15121

Senior Architect (expert advisory for clinical information modelling)

Opportunity ID

15121

Deadline for asking questions

Wednesday 18 August 2021 at 6pm (in Canberra)

Application closing date

Friday 20 August 2021 at 6pm (in Canberra)

Published

Friday 6 August 2021

Category

Data science

Overview

This is a part time role 10 hours per week. The Australian Digital Health Agency’s team of clinical information modellers requires an expert FHIR (Fast Health Interoperability Resources) advisor (Senior FHIR Architect) to support its work program. The team will utilise this expert advice to further develop their FHIR modelling and authoring skills and to deliver FHIR-based clinical information models and information architectures. This is an expert role that requires deep involvement with the Australian and international FHIR communities and the facilitation of the Agency’s ongoing and effective engagement and collaboration with these communities.

Estimated start date

1-09-2021

Location of work

Australian Capital Territory
New South Wales
Queensland

Length of contract

12 months

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Comments more than welcome!

David.

Monday, August 16, 2021

Weekly Australian Health IT Links – 16 August, 2021.

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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Lots of NBN news this week with the NBN announcing financial results and continuing to make it very difficult for the retailers to deliver an excellent service due to their FTTN etc failures.

Otherwise we see the usual ADHA news as well a big private sector news of Medical Director and Medical Director.

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https://www.innovationaus.com/govt-hands-microsoft-digital-health-contract/

Govt hands Microsoft digital health contract

Denham Sadler
National Affairs Editor

Microsoft has won a new contract with the Digital Health Agency following a closed tender process thanks to its whole-of-government sourcing agreement.

The contract, posted publicly this week and running from 16 June to 24 September, is worth more than $600,000.

The job did not go out for open tender, with the agency saying this was due to an “absence of competition for technical reasons”.

In response to questions from InnovationAus, a spokesperson for the Australian Digital Health Agency (ADHA) declined to reveal what work the contract relates to, but confirmed it was signed through the government’s existing volume sourcing arrangement with Microsoft, inked by the Digital Transformation Agency.

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https://www.afr.com/street-talk/telstra-secures-deal-to-buy-gp-software-platform-medical-director-20210808-p58gvj

Telstra secures deal to buy GP software group MedicalDirector

Anthony Macdonald and Yolanda Redrup

Aug 8, 2021 – 2.39pm

Telecommunications bigwig Telstra is set to acquire Australian patient management software company MedicalDirector.

Sources said Telstra and MedicalDirector’s owner, private equity firm Affinity Equity Partners, signed a deal over the weekend after an auction run by investment bank Jefferies.

Telstra chief executive Andy Penn has said that Telstra Health is a long-term bet. He’s now helping the business considerably increase its footprint in the general practice sector.  

The deal will see MedicalDirector join the telco’s Telstra Health unit, which provides IT and software services to health and aged care groups in Australia including government-run services and private providers.

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https://www.theaustralian.com.au/business/technology/telstra-boosts-digital-health-business-with-medicaldirector-swoop/news-story/55540599ea857136aa5568ee6ea3a890

Telstra boosts digital health business with MedicalDirector swoop

Cliona O'Dowd

Bridget Carter

August 9, 2021

Telco giant Telstra is set to scoop up software company MedicalDirector after reaching a deal with private equity owner Affinity Equity Partners.

The acquisition will see MedicalDirector, one of the nation’s largest patient management software companies, join Telstra’s growing health business at a time of booming demand for services.

The transaction was agreed over the weekend, according to sources, and comes after a lengthy sales process of the software company.

MedicalDirector was on and off the market through advisory firm Jefferies Australia from 2019. While the sale was paused through the worst of the Covid crisis, it began ramping up again around April, as revealed at the time by The Australian’s DataRoom column. In recent months, Telstra emerged as the favourite to win the race that is understood to have included at least one other interested party.

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https://www.itwire.com/deals/telstra-health-to-acquire-medicaldirector-at-a%24350-million-by-q1-fy22.html

Monday, 09 August 2021 09:47

Telstra Health to acquire MedicalDirector at $350 million by Q1 FY22

By Kenn Anthony Mendoza

Telstra Health has inked a binding agreement to acquire GP clinical and practice management software company MedicalDirector for $350 million, in a deal Telstra says reflects continued growth, and strengthening of its existing presence in the UK.

Telstra Health board chair Brendon Riley says the acquisition of MedicalDirector was a key step to create a connected and improved digital health experience for all.

“MedicalDirector supports consultations by medical practitioners through a comprehensive patient medical record, including electronic prescriptions, options for virtual consultations, patient care plans, real time alerts about drug safety and drug interaction, and a range of other functionalities,” Riley says.

“Practice management is an important addition for Telstra Health in providing quality solutions and supporting them to deliver care. Telstra Health has transformed substantially over the past five years and this announcement reflects its continuing maturity as a business,” Riley adds. “It also reflects its continued growth into a global business, including strengthening our existing presence in the UK where MedicalDirector has been establishing itself in recent years.”

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https://www.itnews.com.au/news/telstra-health-to-buy-medicaldirector-for-350m-568343

Telstra Health to buy MedicalDirector for $350m

By Ry Crozier on Aug 9, 2021 9:44AM

Practice management SaaS vendor changes hands.

Telstra Health will buy general practice management software maker MedicalDirector for $350 million.

The telco’s health arm is buying MedicalDirector from private equity firm Affinity Equity Partners, which paid $117 million for it in March 2016.

Board chair Brendon Riley said the purchase reflects Telstra Health’s “maturity as a business” and its ambitions to be a global player, given MedicalDirector also has a presence in the UK.

“GPs play a central role in connecting to every part of the health and aged care systems, and practice management is an incredibly important addition for Telstra Health in providing quality solutions and supporting them to deliver care,” Riley said in a statement.

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https://www.zdnet.com/article/telstra-health-to-pick-up-medicaldirector-for-au350m/

Telstra Health to pick up MedicalDirector for AU$350m

MedicalDirector will be the second business Telstra Health has acquired in less than a month.

By Aimee Chanthadavong | August 9, 2021 -- 06:38 GMT (16:38 AEST) | Topic: Cloud

Telstra Health has entered an acquisition deal, valued at AU$350 million, with medical practice management software firm MedicalDirector.

MedicalDirector is a cloud-based software provider owned by Affinity Equity Partners. Telstra Health claims the company currently supports approximately 23,000 medical practitioners and is used to deliver over 80 million consults a year through its solutions, including electronic health records, patient and practice management, billing, scheduling, and care coordination.

The Telstra subsidiary, which has previously come under fire for its troubled Australian cervical and bowel cancer screening registers project, said the acquisition would support the company's long-term growth strategy in the health and aged care sectors.

"Patient care journeys move back and forth across home, clinics, hospitals, aged-care, and pharmacies. This acquisition helps realise our vision to connect and coordinate across the continuum of care, enabling smoother experiences for those who need it and provide it," Telstra Health managing director Mary Foley said.

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https://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/business/companies/telstra-stumps-up-350m-to-fill-missing-piece-in-health-portfolio-20210809-p58h1k.html

Telstra stumps up $350m to fill ‘missing piece’ in health portfolio

By Emma Koehn

August 9, 2021 — 1.10pm

Telstra’s health investment arm has put itself squarely on the radar of Australia’s GP clinics after closing a $350 million takeover of clinic management software company MedicalDirector.

Board chair of Telstra Health, Brendon Riley, said the telco’s investment arm was involved in a range of health sectors - from aged care to pharmacies - but the MedicalDirector purchase unlocked a key new market.

“There’s [been] one really important piece of that ecosystem missing, and that’s GPs,” he said.

Telstra confirmed on Monday it was the successful bidder for MedicalDirector, which has previously been owned by ASX-listed Primary Healthcare (now known as Healius), and was bought by Affinity Equity Partners in 2016.

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https://www.theaustralian.com.au/business/the-deal-magazine/this-startup-is-solving-the-problem-of-recruiting-volunteers-for-medical-trials/news-story/d6f9e62c9e5693fe39b44ea0f7e50ebb

This start-up is solving the problem of recruiting volunteers for medical trials

Rhiannon Down

10:44AM July 30, 2021

For health entrepreneur Manuri Gunawardena it was a real-world experience that sparked the idea for her digital platform, HealthMatch.

Sydney-based Gunawardena, 28, was working on a dendritic cell brain cancer immunotherapy vaccine trial at Duke University when she decided to create a platform that matches patients, who are desperate to join potentially lifesaving trials, and researchers, looking for ideal participants.

“We were trying to find patients for this study, it is one of those cancers where you have about 15 months to live and, in 50 years, there hasn’t been any progress in treatments available and people are pretty keen to try new treatments,” she says.

“We just got two patients at a hotel close to our lab, and I thought that was pretty concerning as there are patients who are willing to fly all over the world to try new trials.”

Realising that she had stumbled on a problem for researchers all over the world, with an estimated 80 per cent of trials failing to recruit, Gunawardena decided she wanted to do something to make vital information about medical trials more accessible.

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https://www1.racgp.org.au/newsgp/professional/further-extension-of-electronic-prescription-subsi

Further extension of electronic prescription subsidy

The Department of Health will support general practices to prescribe via SMS until at least 30 June 2022.

Morgan Liotta


10 Aug 2021

The number of electronic prescriptions being used in Australia is increasing by around 500,000 every week, and as of July 2021, more than 12 million original and repeat prescriptions have been issued.
 
To date, this growth has been supported by a Federal Government subsidy that has allowed general practices to prescribe via SMS without incurring additional costs.
 
However, there were concerns about the future of electronic prescribing should the subsidy end, which is why RACGP Expert Committee – Practice Technology and Management (REC–PTM) representative Dr David Adam has welcomed its extension until at least 30 June 2022.
 
‘The subsidy provides more certainty for practice owners and practitioners and will help to consolidate electronic prescribing as a core part of practice,’ he told newsGP.
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https://wildhealth.net.au/radiotherapy-2021-if-you-can-track-it-you-can-treat-it/

9 August 2021

Radiotherapy 2021: if you can track it, you can treat it

Clinical Hospital Robotics Technology

By Holly Payne

Advances in medical technology have helped make 2021 “the most exciting time” in radiotherapy, according to Perth-based oncologist Professor David Joseph.

Speaking at the Medical Oncology Group of Australia (MOGA) 2021 scientific meeting session on innovation, Professor Joseph said treatment innovations such as intensity modulation radiotherapy (IMRT), CyberKnife and FLASH radiotherapy all offer a glimpse into the future of the field.

Where conventional external beam radiation therapy uses a uniform field of beams, IMRT utilises non-uniform beams, sparing the normal tissue around a cancer as opposed to simply shielding it.

“[IMRT] beams vary across the field, and we utilise a system called ‘inverse planning’ where we specify where we don’t want to treat, so we can avoid critical structures,” Professor Joseph said.

“The aim is to get a higher degree of conformality with normal tissue sparing, and you can actually shape the beam – the next steps were to alter the beam even more with multi-leaf collimators, so you can vary it during actual treatment.”

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https://www.healthcareit.com.au/article/covaxapp-enabled-over-140000-covid-19-vaccination-bookings-victorias-southwest-and-geelong

CoVaxApp enabled over 140,000 COVID-19 vaccination bookings in Victoria's Southwest and Geelong region

Adam Ang | 10 Aug 2021

Before Victoria launched a state-wide online vaccine booking platform in late July, Geelong-based Barwon Health worked with Melbourne-based IT company Circle T to develop CovaxApp, a vaccine booking and administration tool that supported the early vaccination drive in the state's Southwest and Geelong region.

WHY IT MATTERS

According to Barwon Health's media release, the CoVaxApp platform supported on-site vaccination processes, reporting of patient outcomes and online bookings. The system had enabled the administration of over 140,000 COVID-19 vaccines and during peak times, it was able to assist in inoculating 3,000 persons daily.

THE LARGER TREND

Victoria is currently under a seven-day lockdown following a fresh COVID-19 outbreak due to the spread of the Delta variant.

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https://www.cairnspost.com.au/news/cairns/directorgeneral-orders-review-into-troubleplagued-35m-fnq-ehealth-software/news-story/352e33d4868f274a650de5c8519cc0fb

Director-General orders review into trouble-plagued $35m FNQ e-healthsoftware

The Cairns Post

THE Director-General of Queensland Health has ordered a review into atrouble-plagued $35 million e-health record developed exclusively for the Far ...

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https://www.itwire.com/computers-peripherals/new-withings-scanwatch-rose-gold-keeps-you-healthy-while-looking-good.html

Thursday, 12 August 2021 23:38

New Withings ScanWatch Rose Gold keeps you healthy while looking good

By David M Williams

French health-tech manufacturer Withings continues to impress with its range of clinically validated smart devices that track your vital statistics - and with style too, as evidenced by the latest Rose Gold model ScanWatch to hit our shores.

If you've not heard of Withings there's no doubt you'll be hearing about them more and more. The company is headquartered in France, manufacturing and distributing innovative connected medical devices worldwide. Withings - pronounced “WITH-things” has pioneered digital health, releasing the world’s first Wi-Fi scale in 2009, an FDA-approved blood pressure monitor, a smart sleep tracking system, a smart thermos, and the ScanWatch range of activity tracking watches.

The ScanWatch is Withings' most advanced hybrid smartwatch and was the first smartwatch available in Australia that was clinically validated with ECG technology. It’s now available in a brand new colour, with the new rose gold model hitting Australia’s shores.

iTWire has been using the ScanWatch for ourselves. As you'd expect, it tells the time but it is so much more. It is clinically validated for medical accuracy and tracks heart rate, irregular or high or low heartbeats, breathing disturbances, electrocardiogram, oxygen saturation, steps, and distance walked - yes, even in COVID-19 lockdown you can be spurred on to keep fit, metabolic calories and total calories expenditure, automatically detected running duration and distance, automatically detected swimming duration and calories burned, sleep interruptions, deep and light sleep phases, and elevation both in metres and floors.

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https://www.nationaltribune.com.au/act-and-nsw-consumers-can-now-choose-pathology-lab-that-can-upload-their-results-to-my-health-record/

ACT and NSW consumers can now choose pathology lab that can upload their results to My Health Record

·         9 Aug 2021 8:06 am AEST

Australian Digital Health Agency

Healius Pathology has expanded its delivery of results to My Health Record to consumers in ACT and New South Wales as well as those in Victoria and South Australia.

Matthew Brumby, General Manager of Laverty Pathology, said that reports are now being shared in My Health Record for patients with pathology tests processed by a Laverty Pathology Laboratory in the ACT or NSW, or from Kossard Dermatopathologists.

“Tests conducted for inpatients by Laverty Pathology at Port Macquarie Hospital will be shared with My Health Record later this year,” Mr Brumby said.

There are more than 700 Laverty Pathology collection centres throughout NSW and the ACT.

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https://www.miragenews.com/eprescription-sms-subsidy-extension-to-30-june-612278/

12 Aug 2021 12:06 pm AEST

EPrescription SMS Subsidy Extension to 30 June 2022

Australian Medical Association

GPs should be aware that the ePrescription SMS subsidy has been extended to 30 June 2022.

This extension comes after ongoing review of the Boston Consulting Group consultation, to which the AMA made a submission in May 2021. The AMA has been calling on the Department of Health and the Australian Digital Health Agency (ADHA) to develop long term solutions to avoid these SMS costs being passed onto prescribers.

The Department of Health is now considering the outcomes of this work and intends to engage in further consultation across the health sector.

It should be noted that SMS costs are specific to the provision of electronic prescription tokens to patients on their mobile phone. Alternatives exist for prescribers and dispensers to send electronic prescriptions to patients via email or through mobile applications that do not incur these SMS costs.

Now that the Active Script List is expanding in its availability to consumers across Australia, more health professionals and consumers will also be able to use this token management solution that will not incur the SMS charges. Innovations across the digital landscape will offer other alternatives as more digital health initiatives become a reality over time.

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https://wildhealth.net.au/e-scripts-bring-healthcare-into-the-21st-century/

9 August 2021

E-scripts bring healthcare into the 21st century

By Holly Payne

After almost 10 years in the works, electronic prescriptions couldn’t have been signed into law at a better time.

Officially approved in October 2019, more than 12 million e-scripts have been issued over the course of the pandemic.

“Had we not had digital prescription tokens, whenever a patient had a telehealth consultation and needed medication, the doctor would have had to post the prescription or someone would have had to go into the pharmacy,” MediSecure CEO Paul Frosdick told Wild Health.

As one of two Australian software vendors that run a prescription exchange service – the other being eRx – MediSecure’s core business is essentially ensuring that data sharing between primary care and pharmacy is smooth and secure.

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https://www.itnews.com.au/news/telstra-ceo-has-nbn-co-chiefs-ear-on-underperforming-fttn-issues-568559

Telstra CEO has NBN Co chief's ear on underperforming FTTN issues

By Ry Crozier on Aug 12, 2021 5:19PM

Analysis: But will it resolve historical issues of who foots the bill?

Telstra CEO Andrew Penn says he has the ear of his counterpart at NBN Co Stephen Rue over long-running issues around selling fibre-to-the-node (FTTN) services, though it’s unclear if that will lead NBN Co to pay for past mistakes.

Australia’s competition watchdog launched proceedings against Telstra, Optus and TPG on Monday, alleging they had breached court-enforceable undertakings to make things right with some FTTN customers.

The issues date back to 2017 onwards when many retail service providers (RSPs) got into trouble for signing customers up to plans that their NBN connections were incapable of delivering.

As iTnews reported at the time, RSPs receive only estimated speed information from NBN Co for new connections.

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https://www.itwire.com/telecoms-and-nbn/nbn-co-delivers-revenue-and-ebitda-growth.html

Wednesday, 11 August 2021 16:07

NBN Co delivers revenue and EBITDA growth

By Chris Coughlan

NBN Co generated total revenue of $4.6 billion in FY21, an increase of 21% year-on-year. Driving the revenue was the addition of 933,000 residential and business premises that connected to the network in the last 12 months and a total of 8.2 million premises connected to the network at 30 June 2021.

The company generated Earnings Before Interest, Tax, Depreciation and Amortisation (EBITDA) of $1.35 billion in the 12 months to 30 June 2021. The outcome was based on revenue growth and a reduction in subscriber payments, resulting in a $2 billion improvement on FY20 EBITDA. NBN Co’s subscriber payments to Telstra and Optus halved in the 12 months to 30 June, decreasing from $2. 4 billion in FY20 to $1.2 billion in FY21.

NBN said, the company’s strong financial results and predicable, sustainable cashflow creates a solid platform that enables the company to continue to progress and accelerate its network investment plan for the benefit of customers.

NBN says that customer demand for the higher speed tiers remained strong throughout FY21 with 75% of customers on retail plans based on wholesale download speed tiers of 50 Mbps and above at 30 June1. The company saw a positive market response to its Focus on Fast campaign, which launched on 1 February 2021 to support retailers and encourage customers to upgrade to higher speed tiers.

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https://www.itwire.com/telecoms-and-nbn/the-accc-telstra,-optus-and-tpg-allegedly-misled-consumers-over-nbn-maximum-speeds.html

Wednesday, 11 August 2021 09:36

The ACCC - Telstra, Optus and TPG allegedly misled consumers over NBN maximum speeds

By Chris Coughlan

The ACCC said it has instituted separate proceedings in the Federal Court against each of Telstra, Optus, and TPG for making alleged false or misleading representations in their promotions of some 50Mbps and 100Mbps NBN plans, in breach of the Australian Consumer Law.

The ACCC alleges that the companies made representations to some consumers on Fibre to the Node (FTTN) connections that they would test the maximum speed of their connections, notify the impacted consumer of their maximum speed if their line was underperforming, and offer them remedies if the maximum speed was below their plan’s stated speed, but failed to do so for many customers.

The ACCC also alleged Telstra, Optus and TPG wrongly accepted payments from certain customers for NBN plans when they were not provided with the promised speeds.

“Telstra, Optus and TPG each promised to tell consumers within a specific or reasonable timeframe if the speed they were paying for could not be reached on their connection. They also promised to offer them a cheaper plan with a refund if that was the case. Instead, we allege, they failed to do these things, and as a result many consumers paid more for their NBN plans than they needed to,” ACCC chair Rod Sims said.

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https://www.itwire.com/telecoms-and-nbn/nbn-co-creates-44-new-nbn-business-fibre-zones,-offers-wholesale-discounts-on-business-nbn-enterprise-ethernet-services.html

Wednesday, 11 August 2021 09:06

NBN Co creates 44 new NBN Business Fibre Zones, offers wholesale discounts on business NBN Enterprise Ethernet services

By Chris Coughlan

NBN Co announced the creation of 44 new NBN Business Fibre Zones to deliver premium business-grade fibre to an additional 60,000 eligible businesses premises across Australia, on demand, with no charge for the design and construction of fibre to the premises when they order a premium business NBN Enterprise Ethernet service.

The new NBN Business Fibre Zones will be available for eligible businesses in these new locations from 1 September 2021. NBN said, if the business customer signs up to a three-year plan from their internet retailer, NBN Co will not charge the retailer an up-front connection cost.

NBN says, it follows NBN Co’s announcement in September 2020 to create the first 240 NBN Business Fibre Zones, offering direct fibre connections and enabling access to business-grade broadband to a customer base of around 790,000 eligible business premises across Australia.

NBN advise that the 284 Business Fibre Zones will offer more than 850,000 business locations across Australia access to business NBN Enterprise Ethernet, the company’s fastest symmetrical wholesale product options with a 99.95 per cent network availability uptime target designed to help optimise network reliability and help reduce downtime for business.

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https://www.afr.com/chanticleer/nbn-turns-opaque-on-financial-disclosure-20210810-p58hjy

NBN turns opaque on financial disclosure

NBN is increasingly restricting the amount of financial information it shares with the public and this raises questions about the efficiency of its operating and capital expenditure.

Aug 11, 2021 – 12.00am

NBN Co chief executive Stephen Rue has picked an interesting time to use a somewhat strange excuse for limiting the financial disclosures by the country’s government-owned wholesale broadband provider.

At NBN Co’s financial results briefing on Tuesday, Rue refused to discuss details about the government-owned company’s ballooning forward cash flows.

He says NBN Co’s obligations to international debt investors mean he is extremely limited in what he can say about forward-looking financial statements.

The company has raised $14 billion in debt from capital markets and banks, including $8 billion in the year to June 30. It plans to raise a total of $27.5 billion in debt by June 2024.

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https://www.theaustralian.com.au/business/technology/pandemic-fuels-need-for-nbn-speed/news-story/c1fd760f26f09982f6a34b64f91bde1e

Pandemic fuels need for NBN speed

David Swan

August 10, 2021

NBN Co has narrowed its losses and lifted revenue by 21 per cent year-on-year to $4.6bn, as ongoing lockdowns continue to spur demand for ultra-fast broadband.

In its FY21 annual results the company posted earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) of $1.35bn in the 12 months to June 30, 2021 – up $2bn from a year earlier – as subscriber payments to Telstra and Optus tapered and 933,00 more customers were added to the network.

The pandemic has also prompted customers to choose higher speeds as NBN embarks on its “Home Ultrafast” upgrade program, with 17 per cent of residential customers on speeds of 100 Mbps and above, compared to 9 per cent a year earlier.

“This is a huge shift in the makeup of our speed tier mix, especially when you consider that just four years ago, the vast majority of customers, some 84 per cent, were on plans of 25Mbps and slower,” CEO Stephen Rue said. “Over that same period, the average monthly download amount per customer has increased from 207 gigabytes to more than 350 gigabytes a month.

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https://www.itnews.com.au/news/nbn-co-to-offer-first-10000-fttn-premises-fibre-upgrades-by-year-end-568394

NBN Co to offer first 10,000 FTTN premises fibre upgrades by year end

By Ry Crozier on Aug 10, 2021 9:32AM

Eligibility criteria is still unclear.

NBN Co said it will initiate a “small volume launch” of on-demand upgrades to full fibre connections by the end of the year, encompassing “up to” 10,000 premises.

The upgrades are eventually to be offered in half of the company’s fibre-to-the-node (FTTN) footprint, under a near $3 billion program unveiled last year.

NBN Co announced in May that 1.1 million premises had so far been identified as potentially eligible for a free upgrade.

The company has also recently appointed construction partners to perform the upgrade works, which involve overbuilding the existing FTTN area with fibre, and then making last-mile fibre connections to premises “on-demand”, assuming those premises meet certain criteria.

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https://www.afr.com/companies/telecommunications/revenue-per-user-stuck-at-nbn-co-in-threat-to-budget-20210810-p58he2

Stalled NBN Co revenue per user threatens budget

Lucas Baird Reporter

Updated Aug 10, 2021 – 9.50am, first published at 9.48am

NBN Co’s average residential revenue has stalled at $45 per user with just 24 more months left for the government-owned entity to lift this to its target of $49 to avoid a write-down that may cut into the federal budget bottom line.

The company, which built and now operates the national broadband network, said its revenue rose an impressive 21 per cent to $4.6 billion in the year ended June 30.

But this was followed a sharp rise in connected premises to 8.2 million, and the key residential average revenue per user (ARPU) metric used in the telecoms sector stuck fast at $45 – where it had been in financial year 2020 – despite more customers moving onto higher speed connections.

Big capacity discounts for retailers reselling the NBN on their network during the pandemic, which were in play for the first half of the 2021 period,  also weighed on NBN Co’s results.

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https://www.theaustralian.com.au/business/companies/telstras-back-on-track-with-andy-penn-holding-the-reins/news-story/ca1a3c5825ee40f168972405e216c63d

Telstra’s back on track with Andy Penn holding the reins

TICKY FULLERTON

6:01PM August 9, 2021

Not so long ago there were mutterings in the investment community about whether Andy Penn should call time in the top job at Telstra. Was his great 2018 transition strategy of T22 much more than a cost-cutting exercise? Where was the growth? Why was NBN in such a controlling position on pricing?

Ahead of its results on Thursday, Penn is in charge of a different looking beast, with short and long-term strategic options for growth. Ongoing negotiations between the government, Penn and Telstra chair John Mullen are now multi-layered and very nuanced, involving competition, technology, geopolitics, Covid-19 and of course, tens of billions of dollars. One of the most respected telecoms analysts in the country, New Street Research’s Ian Martin, has been following Telstra for the best part of 25 years.

“Telstra was staring down the barrel a year ago,” he said. “The T22 plan had been put on hold because of Covid, mobile roaming and fixed line costs were affected and you still had another year or more of NBN migration to go. The outlook was pretty uncertain.”

In June, a $2.8bn deal took the market by surprise. The Future Fund and two other giant investors took a 49 per cent stake in Telstra’s mobile tower portfolio. Martin says the high valuation, at 28 times EBITDA, is akin to US companies. Telstra, however, has managed to achieve a deal where it more or less retains control.

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https://www.itnews.com.au/news/telstra-optus-tpg-to-face-court-over-underperforming-fttn-services-568372

Telstra, Optus, TPG to face court over underperforming FTTN services

By Ry Crozier on Aug 9, 2021 3:09PM

In a saga that stretches back to late 2017.

Telstra, Optus and TPG are to be brought before the federal court over allegations they mishandled fibre-to-the-node customers with underperforming services.

The court action, filed by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC), is the latest chapter in a saga that started back in late 2017.

The issue stems from inaccurate (or non-existent) line speed data provided by NBN Co at the point of sale, and then by retail providers not dropping all users back to attainable (but cheaper) tiers if they had signed up to a plan speed they could not achieve.

Both sides say they have improved their processes since 2017, in part as a result of system changes by NBN Co and specific court-enforceable undertakings agreed to by the RSPs. RSPs still argue that NBN Co's systems are inadequate or ineffective.

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https://www.itnews.com.au/news/telstra-predicts-fresh-arpu-hikes-from-nbn-cos-price-models-568358

Telstra predicts fresh ARPU hikes from NBN Co's price models

By Ry Crozier on Aug 9, 2021 12:55PM

But see little upside in them.

Telstra says new price models drafted by NBN Co would push up retail prices and create more revenue per user than is currently expected.

NBN Co put three price constructs on the table in June that either retain the status quo or offer a partial or full implementation of flat wholesale pricing.

The full flat price construct is the most favoured, but retail service providers (RSPs) have so far struggled to make sense of the numbers and how they have been reached.

The flat price construct, as proposed by NBN Co, would mean an immediate $5 to $20 a month hike in prices across the board, and yearly indexed increases of an unspecified amount above the rate of inflation.

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https://www.smh.com.au/politics/federal/telstra-given-green-light-to-expand-regional-dominance-under-new-spectrum-limits-20210808-p58gut.html

Telstra given green light to expand regional dominance under new spectrum limits

By Lisa Visentin and Zoe Samios

August 8, 2021 — 10.00pm

Telstra has declared a win in its fight for more of the country’s scarce radio frequency spectrum, with the telco poised to consolidate its dominance in regional areas under new limits set by the federal government.

Communications Minister Paul Fletcher on Sunday imposed a 45 per cent limit on the amount of low-band radio frequency spectrum that telcos can buy to boost their regional 5G mobile coverage when it is auctioned off later this year. He set a separate bidding limit of 40 per cent for metro areas.

His decision represents a partial departure from the advice of the competition watchdog, which proposed a single 40 per cent limit across regional and metro areas, and is a boon for Telstra in the regions, handing it more than the 43 per cent limit it had lobbied for.

Mr Fletcher, however, maintained his decision amounted to an “incremental increase” to Telstra’s potential spectrum allocation and denied Optus and TPG’s regional customers would be disadvantaged.

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https://www.itwire.com/business-telecoms/accan-calls-on-nbn-co-to-release-low-income-affordable-broadband-as-australians-face-lockdown.html

Friday, 06 August 2021 12:47

ACCAN calls on NBN Co to release low-income affordable broadband as Australians face lockdown

By Kenn Anthony Mendoza

The Australian Communications Consumer Action Network (ACCAN) is requesting telecommunications company NBN Co to provide low-income affordable broadband to Australians facing extended lockdowns.

The ACCAN has called on NBN Co to launch a low-income affordable broadband to allow struggling households to work and learn remotely as millions of Australians are facing extended lockdowns.

ACCAN’s urgent call is part of the consumer advocacy group’s submission to NBN Co’s Special Access Undertaking Variation 2021 discussion paper.

ACCAN CEO Teresa Corbin says communities in New South Wales are entering their sixth week of lockdown.

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https://www.itnews.com.au/news/nbn-co-makes-spirited-defence-of-cvc-and-its-cost-to-date-568335

NBN Co makes spirited defence of CVC and its cost to date

By Ry Crozier on Aug 9, 2021 6:38AM

As industry unites a second time in its demand for change.

NBN Co has posted a spirited defence of its controversial bandwidth charge and of its incurred costs to date, as the top five internet providers - Telstra, Optus, Aussie Broadband, TPG Telecom and Vocus - united to demand action.

The first formal responses following a June ‘roundtable’ intended to kickstart a conversation on NBN Co’s future price and non-price terms shows a chasm between NBN Co and the industry’s thinking.

Importantly, just as they did last month, all five top retail service providers (RSPs), representing some 96 percent of fixed-line users, formally united on the issues of the future of the connectivity virtual circuit (CVC) charge and the cost of the NBN.

In the past, most - if not all - RSPs broadly agreed on these issues but took the fight individually to NBN Co. This time, however, they have united to offer a single joint view.

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Enjoy!

David.