Healthcare IT news round-up

This weeks’ healthcare IT round-up includes news of an innovative new model for digital imaging that has been adopted by Spire Healthcare, using a full suite of Carestream technologies, a new contract for The Learning Clinic from the first hospital to use its VitalPAC system, and some INPS one-day events for Vision users.

Roll-outs

Spire Healthcare rolls out Carestream Vue PACS upgrade

Spire Healthcare, which operates a network of 38 private hospitals, has upgraded its Carestream picture archiving and communications and radiology information system, moving to Carestream Vue PACS v11.4 and Carestream RIS v10.

This has also involved the group in moving to a software as a service model for its digital imaging, with Carestream hosting the new systems in its UK data centre. Radiologists will be able to access images through Carestream Vue Motion, using iPads and other tablet devices, and patients will have access via the Carestream My Vue portal.

Contract wins

The Learning Clinic’s first trust renews its contract for VitalPAC

The Learning Clinic has won a further, five year contract with Portsmouth Hospitals NHS Trust for its VitalPAC clinical solutions. The trust worked closely with the company to develop The Learning Clinic’s original product, VitalPAC Nurse, and has been using it since 2008.

The new contract, which was won after a competitive tendering process, will see the trust adopt other products, including VitalPAC Doctor, which was launched in July this year. Simon Holmes, medical director at the trust, said: “We were the first to use VitalPAC and today’s announcement shows that, as far as we are concerned, there is no going back.”

Liverpool out-of-hours service works with Advanced business software

Urgent Care 24, an out-of-hours primary care service operating in Halton, Knowsley and Liverpool, is to implement an integrated finance, e-procurement and document management system from Advanced Business Solutions in December this year. It wants to eliminate much of the manual work in its back-office processes in order to drive growth.

Welsh children’s hospital creates ambient experience

The Children’s Hospital for Wales, part of the University Hospital of Wales, has opened a multi-sensory imaging department called ‘Latchmostphere’ with the support of the LATCH charity and sponsors and using technology from Royal Philips. The centre has wall-sized animations, lighting, imagery and music and is designed to provide a relaxing atmosphere for children who need scans at the oncology imaging department.

Campaigns, research and support

NHS England supports Get Online Week

NHS England is supporting this week’s Get Online Week, a campaign by the Tinder Foundation to help people lacking basic digital skills to get online, in order to improve their health. Many of the 10.5 million people who lack digital skills, and the 6.5 million who have never been online, are older, less well off, or likely to have a disability.

EMC poll says government digital services lag behind the private sector

EMC has commissioned a poll of British and Irish consumers to determine what they think of digital services. The company says the poll of 2,000 people, conducted by Opinium Research, showed they think government digital services are lagging behind those in the private sector, and that they would support developments in healthcare such as downloadable prescriptions and live chats with GPs.

GP Access puts out patient video

GP Access, an appointment system that makes it easier for patients to contact their GP and to receive advice online, has worked with Health and Care Videos to provide a new video about its service: ‘Making it Easier to See Your Doctor.’ A branded version of the video can be created for each GP practice that adopts the service.

 INPS to run Healthcare Everywhere conferences

INPS will be hosting a series of free conferences for clinicians and staff using its Vision system this November and December, to keep them up to date with developments, and explore the idea of ‘healthcare everywhere.’ The one-day events will be at five locations around the UK. Details on the company’s website.