Health Tech Digital Magazine | November 2018 | Issue 1

November 2018 Issue No. 1

HIGHLIGHTS OF THE MONTH

Government launches plan to have the most advanced healthcare system in the world

Patients set to benefit from £17 million funding to revolutionise healthcare Getting the NHS access to information – anytime, anyplace, ‘Enyware’ Half a million patients set to benefit from faster treatment access

More people than ever are getting urgent NHS help over the phone Out with the Old… In with the New! Electronic document management systems Crackdown on NHS fraud: new measures announced

Oxehealth secures world-first accreditation for its vital signs technology

NHS saves £100 million through safer, lower cost prescriptions How AR is transforming vascular neurosurgery Ultramed is digitalising preoperative assessments with MyPreOp

ABOUT US

HEALTH TECH DIGITAL Health Tech Digital brings healthcare professionals, thought leaders and healthcare technology companies together by providing a comprehensive online and print magazine, e-newsletter and Health Tech TV covering every aspect of the healthcare technology sector in the UK. We make it easy for healthcare professionals to find solutions, read case studies and connect with companies who are pioneering the digital transformation of healthcare in the UK. Health Tech Digital covers the entire digital transformation journey, from learning about a solution, hearing about new funding and health-tech news, reading case studies, learning about integration, interoperability, security, infrastructure, hardware, equipment, commissioning and procurement. Join over 20,000 healthcare professionals by signing up to our newsletter today.

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here are many ways for you to get involved with Health Tech Digital. Health Tech TV, our new YouTube channel is where we will be sharing healthcare technology information on key topics relevant to the digital transformation of the UK healthcare sector. If you are a healthcare professional and would like us to film your talk about the digital transformation of your trust or if you are a professional who has knowledge on a particular aspect of digital health, we would like to hear from you.

We currently have space for a few guest writers for some of our topics and are always interested to hear any news you may have or a solution overview and case study.

Contact us today if you would like to get involved.

Government launches plan to have the most advanced healthcare system in the world

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ealth and Social Care Secretary, Matt Hancock, has launched his vision for technology and how it can influence the future of healthcare. Matt Hancock is determined to ensure that outdated NHS IT systems are no longer a hindrance to the service. Instead, with his new vision; The Future of Healthcare, he hopes that the UK can have the most advanced healthcare system in the world.

Technology Upgrades The Future of Healthcare publication talks about the NHS having the right level of technology so that it can access real-time data. The vision also outlines a plan to have a minimum standard for technology. This will, therefore, become a standard that IT systems and digital services will have to adhere to. The standard will include technology being upgradable and having the ability to ‘talk’ to each other securely to provide real-time data.

Under the plan set out by Matt Hancock, any technology that fails to meet the minimum standards will have to be phased out. Furthermore, the government will terminate contracts with providers who are unable to provide or do not understand the principles required for the health and care sector.

CCG Freedom As well as having technology standards, the Future of Healthcare also sets out a plan that clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) will have the ability to buy what they need. This plan hopes to increase

competition with providers. It also hopes to improve the user experience and ensure there are better tools for everyone.

The NHS Technology Revolution?

Matt Hancock says; “The tech revolution is coming to the NHS. These robust standards will ensure that every part of the NHS can use the best technology to improve patient safety, reduce delays and speed up appointments.” Furthermore, the government is inviting technology experts, NHS staff and suppliers to share their knowledge to ensure the standards are at their best for users.

The government hopes that asking to hear from a diverse selection of people will help to improve the technology standards and ensure that the UK has the most advanced health and care service in the world.

Dr Simon Eccles also supports the Future of Healthcare document as he believes that by having the right technology, it ensures patients have access to the safest treatment. He also adds that taking swift action on technology would be the best value for taxpayers.

The Chief Executive of NHS Digital, Sarah Wilkinson, also adds that the use of connected systems will help to ensure clinicians have access to all of the relevant patient data that they need in real time. These connected systems can also help to eliminate misinformation and misunderstanding too.

“THE TECH REVOLUTION IS COMING TO THE NHS. THESE ROBUST STANDARDS WILL ENSURE THAT EVERY PART OF THE NHS CAN USE THE BEST TECHNOLOGY TO IMPROVE PATIENT SAFETY, REDUCE DELAYS AND SPEED UP APPOINTMENTS.”

THE TECH REVOLUTION IS COMING TO THE NHS...

More people than ever are getting urgent NHS help over the phone

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ccording to new data from the NHS, more people than ever are getting urgent health advice over the phone. 20,000 people every day are talking to a doctor, nurse, paramedic or other clinical professional. This is approximately half of all calls to the NHS 111 phone service, the highest proportion since the service was first introduced. The NHS is encouraging people to take advantage of being able to get health advice by phone.

Every call answered by NHS 111 is handled by a fully trained member of staff; someone who can offer expert advice, arrange appointments for further help and highlight local services. However, an increasing number of callers are now also receiving urgent help from a medical professional. This is a number that has been increasing every month since data was first collected back in November 2016, when only one in four people spoke to a medical professional.

Being able to offer health advice over the phone is a key part of how the NHS is improving access to urgent help, as a way to reduce the pressure currently put on A&E services. Last month, only one in 10 people who called 111 were advised to go to A&E. This number would have been a lot higher if people were not able to contact a medical professional via 111.

Dr Gareth Stuttard, National Medical Advisor for the NHS 111 service, explained that a lot of people find that NHS 111 offers expert advice without them needing to visit A&E. Stuttard said: “As part of the long term plan for the health service, the NHS in England is rapidly expanding access to urgent and emergency care by increasing community services, investing in the most up to date technology and improving over the phone advice, which will mean more people get the right care, at the right time while reducing the pressure on ambulance and A&E services.”

Last month, the public called the NHS 111 service close to 1.4 million times. This was an 8% increase compared to the same time last year. This equates to 38,000 people receiving help over the phone each day, working out at a total of 16 million calls to NHS 111 in the past twelve months alone.

With 25% people admitting that they would have gone to A&E if they hadn’t been able to contact NHS 111, this shows that the service is helping to ease pressure on frontline services. Another 16% admitted that they would have called an ambulance if NHS 111 had not been an option.

Matt Hancock, Health and Social Care Secretary, said that the NHS 111 clinicians and call handlers answer over a million calls every month. He explained that this helps to relieve pressure on A&E and allows patients to have immediate adise. Hancock said: “Later this year we will launch the new NHS app where patients will be able to get 111 advice on their smartphone as well as make GP appointments and order repeat prescriptions – revolutionising the way millions of us access healthcare as part of our long term plan to guarantee the future of the NHS.”

Crackdown on NHS fraud: new measures announced

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he Health and Social Care Secretary, Matt Hancock, has announced new plans to take action on NHS fraud thanks to a partnership with a leading fraud prevention service.

Every year, fraud costs the NHS £256 million a year.

With the new plans to take tougher action against fraud rolled out over the next five years, they hope to save millions of pounds. Subsequently, this should free up funds to improve patient care.

One area that suffers from fraud is prescription services. One of the first measures put in place will be digitising prescription exemptions. This will make it easier for pharmacists to check whether patients are exempt from paying charges. The scheme will be piloted in 2019 and rolled out across the NHS shortly afterwards.

Other methods of NHS fraud that will be tackled with the new measures include a partnership between Cifas, a fraud prevention service, and the NHS Counter Fraud Authority (NHSCFA). This partnership will mean counter-fraud professionals will have access to the data held by Cifas.

The NHSCFA will also partner with the NHS Business Services Authority to share information about the pharmacists and dentists who are charging the NHS for services they have not carried out.

These actions come after the NHSCFA, which was set up in 2017 to replace NHS Protect, will grow.

There will be a new counter-fraud profession in the government which will have 10,000 counter-fraud specialists. 400 of these will focus on fraud in the NHS.

After announcing the new measures to tackle fraud, Matt Hancock said; “We’re determined to make sure every penny of the extra funding we are giving the NHS as part of our long-term plan is properly spent. The message is clear: the NHS is no longer an easy target, and if you try to steal from it you will face the consequences.”

The interim CEO of NHS Counter Fraud Authority said; “The more data sets we are able to access from partners such as Cifas and the NHS Business Services Authority, the more fraud we can detect and prevent.

NHSCFA are actively engaging with the fintech sector to identify technological solutions that could enhance data examination and exploitation capability.”

“...THE NHS IS NO LONGER AN EASY TARGET, AND IF YOU TRY TO STEAL FROM IT YOU WILL FACE THE CONSEQUENCES.”

Patients set to benefit from £17 million funding to revolutionise healthcare

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he government has just announced the winners of their competition to receive the financing of healthcare innovations. The winners will share over £17 million of funding to make a difference to patient experience and to drive efficiency in healthcare. All of the winners will be developing technology to transform the health and social care market and consequently help to improve patient care.

The Industrial Strategy Challenge Fund The UK Research and Innovation department have managed the competition within the Industrial Strategy Fund. The Industrial Strategy Fund is part of the £4.7 billion of investment from the government in research and design activities. The purpose of the fund is to encourage innovation from UK businesses to tackle the biggest challenges facing industries.

As well as supporting leading-edge healthcare, precision medicine and healthy ageing, the fund is also available for innovation in robotics, driverless cars, quantum technologies as well as many more.

What are the projects that are receiving funding?

Some of the projects to receive the government funding include; • Smartphone applications to monitor and improve the treatment of complex wounds • 3D printing technology for tablets • GPS tracking app for available hospital beds and porters • Greater range of medicines through skin patches • Antibodies that can be taken orally.

The firms and their projects are being developed throughout the UK, highlighting the UK’s strengths in improving an already world-leading healthcare industry.

Making a difference Explaining how the funding can benefit patients and the healthcare industry as a whole, the Executive Chair of Innovate UK, Ian Campbell explains; “The projects we have funded today aim to make a real difference for patients and clinicians. They represent the very best of British innovation, focussing on improved patient outcomes and driving efficiency. The UK health sector is thriving, with SMEs playing a crucial role. By supporting this sector, as part of the government’s modern industrial strategy, we can ensure we remain global leaders in health innovation and create the jobs of tomorrow.”

The Secretary of State of Health and Social Care, Matt Hancock has also expressed his support, explained that there are several ways in which the NHS is embracing innovative technology already such as with VR, artificial intelligence and tracking hospital equipment. With this additional funding, the winning projects will hopefully be able to accelerate the progress of improving patient care while also making NHS the most “technologically advanced healthcare system in the world”.

Half a million patients set to benefit from faster treatment access Around 500,000 patients are set to receive faster access to treatment in the NHS thanks to two new programmes that have just been announced. The Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, Matt Hancock, has recently awarded £7 million of funding for two new projects that aim to speed up treatment access.

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att Hancock says; “These programmes will fast-track innovations from lab bench to patient bedside and help ensure that NHS patients continue to be the first to benefit from the life-changing treatments developed in this country.”

What are the programmes?

The ‘Test Bed’ projects are a joint scheme between the NHS and the government.

The projects aim to harness innovative technologies that can help to improve patient outcomes as well as enhancing the work processes for NHS staff. Furthermore, the projects hope to speed up the uptake across the NHS so that more patients can benefit from the health technology available.

What’s included in the projects?

Some of the funding is being used to test features such as; Diabetes management – A new digital platform hopes to transform the way people with diabetes manage their treatment.

Breast cancer screening – To ensure more effective and accurate screenings, machine learning and artificial intelligence are being introduced.

Chronic long-term heart failure – Three technologies are being trialled in the hope they can reduce the number of A&E admissions for people with longterm heart conditions.

RAPID UPTAKE PROJECTS As well as the three features listed above, the scheme also includes rapid uptake which hopes to increase the speed of implementation of the technologies across the health and care sector. Rapid uptake projects are set to help a range of conditions such as cancer and multiple sclerosis. The additional £2 million funding is to help with the overcoming of barriers to make treatment options more widespread.

With the products supported by rapid uptake, it hopes that it will help half a million NHS patients access new treatments. In turn, this expects to save the NHS £30 million.

The products receiving the support are those that have been developed in this country which not only allows patients to benefit from world-class health innovations, but it also supports UK innovators too. The government investment aims to show that Britain is a leading place for innovators and hopes to accelerate the modern industry strategy of the government as well as ensuring patients lead happier and healthier lives.

TECHNOLOGY IN THE SPOTLIGHT Each month we cover healthcare technology that is revolutionising the UK healthcare sector. This month we focus on technology solutions that help to deliver better quality of care by the implementation of an electronic document management system, improve neurosurgery and pre-op procedures, help with secure communication within trusts, improve care for the elderly and save money by making key information available to those who need it.

IMMJ SYSTEMS

LEICA MICROSYSTEMS

MediViewer

Leica’s Glow800

NORTHUMBRIA HEALTHCARE

OXEHEALTH

Enyware

Vital Signs Technology

FDB

ULTRAMED

OptimiseRx

MyPreOp

Out with the Old… In with the New!

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ould you consider changing your existing underperforming EDMS application with a new next generation EDMS system, seamlessly, quickly, without issue and importantly cost effectively?

There was a time within the NHS when systems supplied by large enterprise organisations would be “shoe horned in” and that was that. The supplier would be gifted an opportunity to work multiple add-ons in as part of a lengthy contract and drain the NHS of its funding whilst clinical users would rarely see the real benefits of the system in full operational use in the way it was sold to them.

The NHS has adapted and embraced change and is starting to make radical and drastic adjustments in order to move forwards driven by government led deadlines, adopting digital technologies and transformation programmes as an enabler.

For a number of years there has been a small cohort of EDMS suppliers, implementing solutions with varying degrees of success.

So how do IMMJ Systems differ from our predecessors?

One example would be “interoperability” – systems talking to each other and sharing information. This issue still remains a huge obstacle in the way of providing joined up care, something that IMMJ have built into the heart of our application – “complete openness” across our entire product suite.

We know that there are close to 160 deployments of EDMS systems in the UK healthcare sector in varying guises but how many have been successfully deployed, meeting the original business case objectives?

There are many where the technology has only been partially deployed. There are several reasons for this with user acceptance at the forefront and yet these solutions have remained, sometimes through inertia to change.

This creates an issue for many Hospital sites, what do they do now? Upgrade to the new version and hope for the best, take the many add-ons in the hope it will enable the drive to roll out across all specialities?

Scan.

Index.

Retrieve.

Archive.

Some Trusts have avoided EDMS technology, choosing to deploy EPR platforms in the notion that this will choke paper generation by holding critical clinical patient documentation in the EPR – avoiding the need for an EDMS. EPR’s are serious commitments but do not solve the problem of the tens of thousands of physical case notes that remain in circulation for some time to come, leading to a ‘mixed experience’ for the clinician accessing paper and digital records.

We can implement our best of breed “next generation” EDMS platform & migrate your legacy scanned data from your existing EDMS seamlessly and swiftly.

Our Advanced Document Importer is designed to harvest documentation quickly from one host application to the MediViewer EDMS platform. All of this data would be subject to OCR and BCR recognition and placed through the IMMJ Systems SmartIndex™ Document Classification engine. This means that you can easily filter for key documents without the need for extensive (and expensive) manual indexing as we do not differentiate between legacy and new (Day Forward) content.

The migration process can also be completed from within our Tier 3 cloud data centre (UKCloud), removing the overhead of having to provide the migration servers and in-house resources to be able to complete the task.

This temporary environment can be decommissioned when the migration is complete.

You are not stuck with your existing platform and can transition to a “next generation” system delivered from a team that can support you through the implementation and transformation process ensuring that your investment will deliver the benefits you originally expected. www.immjsystems.com

How AR is transforming vascular neurosurgery

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hile augmented reality (AR) is growing increasingly common in gaming and technology sectors, it is beginning to transform the health and care industry too. In the health and wellness sector, AR is helping those with Parkinson’s Disease, providing gamification interaction for those on the autism spectrum and helping the blind to navigate better. Now, AR is finding a use in vascular neurosurgery.

What is Leica’s Glow800 Augmented Reality?

Innovative company Leica Microsystems has developed a new product for use in the operating theatre. Their product, the Glow800 augmented reality uses fluorescence to glow parts of the anatomy and create a colour visualisation of the vascular flow.

This is a significant development from the early Leica Microsystems’ products which could visualise blood flow and the anatomy but in black and white.

The Glow800 sits along Leica’s other AR medical support tools. For example, the Glow800 can be integrated with the ARveo digital AR microscope. Following on from these products, Leica wants to continue to work closely with neurosurgeons. This partnership will help the Leica to develop more tools and surgical aids using the technology.

The device uses multispectral colour visualisations and works by assigning different parts of the anatomy and blood flow with different colours. This then enables surgeons to have a better view of the area and can, therefore, work more confidently. As a result, the FDA has given Leica and their Glow 800 AR a clearance for use in vascular neurosurgery.

While Leica is one of the first to take the step with augmented reality and neurosurgery, they hope the AR devices will show results and improve patient outcomes.

If they do, then it is likely that we will see many more augmented reality tools for use in neurosurgery and in the surgery theatre in general.

Getting the NHS access to information – anytime, anyplace, ‘Enyware’

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round-breaking new communications tool bridges the gap between NHS staff and the information they need to meet the challenges and reality of 21st-century healthcare.

NHS trusts are large. Often comprising thousands of staff across dozens of locations they face the challenges that any organisation of that size does:

Following on from the cyber-attack in May 2017 security and resilience were both underlined as critical considerations but the trust was keen to ensure that the platform reflected the reality of how people access and digest information.

• How can management keep in touch with frontline issues?

Accordingly, from its inception Enyware was designed from the very beginning to allow for the easy upload and sharing of a range of content – including video – and to allow for easy use on any smart device. Equally, it users have a significant degree of control over their account, are able to personalise them and even select categories of information they wish to see as a priority.

• How can secure access be guaranteed to sensitive but vital information?

Dr Phil Stamp, ED consultant and part of the development team, said:

To name but a few.

“The great thing about Enyware is that it allows everyone to access critical clinical guidelines from a smart device, which is not only something the trust has invested heavily in but was a particular request made by our junior doctors.

• How can staff be kept informed of developments?

In most large companies the risks in failing to solve these problems are serious – and the NHS is no exception.

For instance, if a doctor cannot access critical data on demand then patients will suffer. Equally, if a member of staff is unaware of an emerging issue (anything from a change of opening times to a full-blown crisis) the harm done can be significant.

“Having effective two-way internal communications is vital for the wellbeing of any major organisation,” said Claire Riley, director of corporate services and communications at Northumbria Healthcare who led the multi-disciplinary team which developed the platform.

“If staff feel out of the loop or that management is unresponsive to changing realities ‘on the ground’ then morale falls, and with it productivity and performance.

Moreover, our staff needs to have secure and consistent access to critical information such as clinical guidelines at any time.

“The NHS is a team and as such, it can only work if all the component parts are pulling in the same direction – especially when things get tough, and they do. Ensuring our staff, no matter their role or seniority, all get the information they need is an absolute priority.”

“In my own experience, the best aspect of it is the ability to easily identify and then contact the correct person if you have an issue – in an organisation of over 12,000 we’re not all on a first name basis! – rapidly and without effort. When it’s Friday night in A&E that matters – a lot.”

Oxehealth secures world-first accreditation for its vital signs technology

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he British Standards Institute (BSI) has accredited Oxehealth’s vital signs measurement software as a Class IIa medical device in Europe.

This is the first time that software enabling a digital video camera sensor to remotely measure vital signs has been approved as a medical device. No global medical device regulator, including the US Food and Drug Administration, has previously approved a device of this nature.

To detect pulse rate, the device works in the same way as the familiar pulse oximeter, which detects the slight changes in skin colour caused by the blood being pumped around the body. However, unlike a pulse oximeter, which must be attached to a patient’s skin, it can be used to monitor pulse rate remotely. The device also detects the movements of the body caused by breathing to count breathing rate.

The Oxehealth vital signs measurement software will now be marketed alongside the company’s existing suite of contact-free activity tracking tools, which are already being used by NHS trusts and care homes to assist staff who need to monitor patients at risk of falls, self-harm or other injuries. Chief executive Hugh Lloyd-Jukes said: “I am thrilled by the European medical device accreditation, which confirms that our technology can take spot measurements of pulse rate and breathing rate that are as accurate and safe as a device that you clip on the skin.

“Pulse oximeters are used in GP practices and hospitals every day. The difference is that we measure pulse rate and breathing rate entirely contact free, anywhere in the patient’s room. “This will be hugely beneficial to public and private sector organisations that care for elderly and vulnerable people, whose staff cannot be present in every room or do not wish to interrupt the rest of the people they are looking after.”

The European medical device accreditation is the culmination of six years’ work by Oxehealth, a spinout from Oxford University’s Institute of Biomedical Engineering and Oxford University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust. From the start, the company worked closely with clinicians. The first clinical studies were completed at the John Radcliffe Hospital in Oxford and tests were later conducted at the Broadmoor Psychiatric Hospital and Coventry and Warwickshire Partnership NHS Trust. To secure the accreditation, the company had to complete a clinical pivotal study to prove the efficacy of its product, and to build a medical device Quality Management System covering its software development and business processes. Both were assessed by The British Standards Institute, acting as a Notified Body on behalf of the MHRA. The Oxehealth vital signs measurement software will now be launched as part of the company’s Digital Care Assistant solution, which uses an optical sensor to pay attention to patients when clinicians cannot be with them. The DCA software alerts staff to risky situations, such as a patient getting out of bed, leaving a room, or moving into a risky area, so staff can intervene quickly.

The system also generates reports that give teams objective data on activity. These are invaluable in shift handover meetings and for understanding patient behaviour. Lloyd-Jukes added: “Clinicians have been using the Digital Care Assistant to help them to identify risky activities and to understand patient activity better. “The addition of the medical device solution will enable organisations to take pulse and breathing rate observations to inform treatment decisions. It is a world first that has the potential to help staff transform care in settings where they cannot, or do not want to, enter a room.

“Looking after the elderly and vulnerable can be extremely challenging. Yet, in contrast to their peers in intensive care, the medical staff working in mental health, nursing homes and custodial settings have never had access to frequent, accurate vital sign measurements. “Now they do, and we are thrilled to be bringing them a 21st Century tool that will help them improve the care of some of society’s most frail patients.”

NHS saves £100 million through safer, lower cost prescriptions

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Ps and community providers across the country have surpassed £100 million in directly attributable savings since frontline staff began using an innovative technology to prescribe less expensive and more clinically appropriate medicines for individual patients, it has been revealed today.

First introduced into the NHS in 2014 the medicines optimisation solution, called OptimiseRx, is now used in thousands of GP practices, and more than 125 of England’s 195 clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) have implemented the solution. It prompts doctors with messages when more cost-effective or clinically appropriate medications are available and makes patient-specific recommendations based on the patient’s medical record and clinical best practice.

A review of system usage across England, conducted by FDB (First Databank), found that £100 million of savings have been achieved by many thousands of prescribers selecting medicines suggested by the solution.

Phil Verplancke, Head of Product Management at FDB, the company behind the technology, said: “It’s great news for the NHS that CCGs are making prescribing budget savings by allowing frontline staff to make the most of technology. However, the solution is more than saving money, and when you factor in the enormous health benefits and non-cash realisable savings that safer prescribing and best practice can bring, such as avoided hospital admissions, the overall benefit to the NHS and patients is likely to be even greater.”

NHS Ipswich and East Suffolk CCG has made the highest saving of any CCG in the country. Rifat Choudhury, Medicines Management Pharmacist, NHS Ipswich and East Suffolk CCG, said: “FDB OptimiseRx has become a powerful tool that our medicines management team rely on to ensure that patient care is optimal, safe and in line with our local governance framework and drug formulary.

Our general practice staff work incredibly hard to select the best possible medication and treatment choice for our patients, and OptimiseRx gives us the added ability of always promoting the most clinically appropriate and cost-effective choice based on fluctuating drug tariffs.”

At peak times OptimiseRx supports more than 1 million prescribing transactions each day for the GP practices, out of hours clinics, and community care settings it serves.

It integrates directly with existing primary care clinical systems, including EMIS Web, TPP SystmOne and Microtest Evolution. This means that busy healthcare professionals are able to receive and act on alerts without logging in and out of multiple clinical systems.

The technology includes thousands of patient-specific algorithms that respond to clinically coded information in the patient record, and is still the only solution supporting medicines management teams with this level of patient specificity. This means that a patient’s medical history, co-morbidities, existing drug regimen, and diagnostic results are considered in messages sent to prescribers.

National guidance from NHS England and best practice guidance from organisations including NICE and the MHRA are also taken into account, with information then linked to the latest cost of pharmaceutical products in the market, and details of which medicines are approved for prescription locally.

Data from FDB customers also revealed that there is typically a less expensive alternative in around one in four patient consultations.

Ultramed is digitalising preoperative assessments with MyPreOp

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fter a highly competitive selection process Ultramed is one of only five companies chosen to represent the South West on the Digital Health Accelerator programme.

Working with high potential start-ups and SMEs each year, the programme, supported by the AHSN network, NHS England and NHS Digital, works alongside the companies to springboard the adoption of the innovative digital solutions into the NHS. ‘Ultramed are delighted to have been awarded a place on the Digital Health Accelerator, it is fantastic to get recognition at this level, the future is looking bright’ – Dr Paul Upton, Ultramed Cofounder and CEO. Ultramed, an award-winning company, puts innovation and first-class patient experiences at the forefront of their strategy. The company have developed MyPreOp®, a cloud-hosted program in the Ultraprep® suite of six integrated products. There are 10 million procedures performed in the NHS each year and preprocedure assessments are generally paper based which are inefficient and do not align with the NHS Paperless 2020 initiative. A Department of Health study predicted £65M p.a. savings if electronic preoperative assessments were used, this is so far not being achieved. MyPreOp® enables patients to enter, own and share their preoperative assessment information, from any device, at any time. This can be a one-stop preoperative assessment following a surgical outpatient

appointment or completed from home. The patient shares their information with the healthcare provider, which generates a report for review by a registered nurse, the output can be integrated directly into the hospital EPR using HL7 messaging and SNOMED-CT coded data. MyPreOp® is powered by complex algorithms which underpin the future development of a Personal Health Record. Sophisticated clinical decision support suggests which preoperative tests and actions should be considered by the preoperative assessment nurse.

Over 4000 patients have successfully used MyPreOp® in commercial trials in the NHS. MyPreOp® empowers patients, improves quality and efficiency, and saves nursing time and money.

The South West is an exciting region to be based with a network of support for health tech innovation. Ultramed have benefited from the increasing support over the last couple of years with programmes such as EPIC and the Acceleration Through Innovation initiative. Ultramed was initially funded by the co-founders, followed by angel investors and a highly successful Crowdcube fund raise in 2017. The target was reached on day 3 and went on to overfund by 300%. The initial grant funding helped with establishing the legal structure of the company including obtaining trademarks and design registrations to protect the Intellectual Property of the program and development work. The more recent grants have supported the innovative development of the software, carried out by Buzz Interactive, another award-winning company based in Cornwall.

‘Aligning investment funding with the grant funds that are available in Cornwall makes it a highly attractive county in which to set up a health tech business.’ Dr Paul Upton, Ultramed Co-founder and CEO MyPreOp has recently been awarded the ‘Software of the Year 2018’ award at the South West Digital Awards where Buzz Interactive took home the title for the Ultramed program. This further supports the innovation and the work which has underpinned the development of such a comprehensive program.

The Digital Health Accelerator programme will be supporting Ultramed until September 2019, watch this space.

EVENTS COMING UP THIS MONTH:

Immersive Technologies for Healthcare 19 November 2018 London

Virtual Reality & Simulation in Healthcare Summit 2018

Healthcare Strategy Forum 20-21 November 2018 Heythrop Park Resort

30 November 2018

GIANT Health

London

Festival of Health Tech Innovation 21–22 November 2018 Chelsea Football Club

Managing digital change in health and care 22 November 2018 Leeds

London

Excellence In Healthcare

The future of digital technology in the NHS

27th - 28th November Waltham Abbey Marriott Hotel Essex

Big Data and AI, efficiency and outcomes, and addressing concerns 23 November 2018 London

See more information on our website:

www.healthtechdigital.com

What to look forward to in the next issue In the December issue we will cover the news highlights for the month and as it is the end of the year, we will be writing a full overview of 2018 as well as what to expect in the year ahead. We will be covering more ground-breaking healthcare technology in our spotlight section.

The next issue will be coming out on Monday 3rd December 2018.

No1 Business Centre, 1 Alvin Street Gloucester, GL1 3EJ, UK +44 (0) 800 772 0790 info@healthtechdigital.com www.healthtechdigital.com