Healthcare IT news in brief

This week’s digital healthcare news round-up includes a CEO appointment, a new app for breast cancer treatment advice and research cash for digital health development.

Docman Hub piloted within InHealth
Diagnostic services provider InHealth has picked Docman to provide a structured messaging platform. Docman will be integrated into InHealth’s patient management system, xRM, and send diagnostic reports electronically as soon as they are available.

InHealth is a private service that is used widely by NHS organisations, particularly GP practices, while Docman is an electronic document and messaging system with thousands of NHS customers, most of them GPs. The arrangement has been piloted with group of GP practices across Enfield and Haringey CCGs.

Emis child health system deployed in Cheshire
A new child health focused product from Emis Health has been deployed across 36 GP practices in the West Cheshire CCG. The product was introduced in August, with 40,000 child health record spanning 25 years migrated to the new system.

The EMIS Web Child Health clinical system allows for easier access to GP records for other health partners involved in a child’s care, including immunisation records.

New CE-approved medical app covers breast cancer
The Predict breast cancer treatment tool is now available in an app, ONCOassist, developed at Cambridge University. The tool takes the algorithms behind Predict and feeds them into the clinical decision support calculator app, generating advice on the best post-surgery course of treatment for breast cancer.

The app is an accredited EU medical device and its other functions include toxicity criteria for adverse reactions and clinical decision support for other cancers. ONCOassist is licensed by Cambridge Enterprise, the commercial arm of the university.

New ceo for IHM
Jill DeBene has been appointed the chief executive of the Institute of Healthcare Management. DeBene has been IHM’s vice-chair for London and South East region for several years.

IHM is a membership organisation for health service managers. It was recently bought by the Academy of Fabulous Stuff Community Interest Company.

More than £100m for medical research, including digital
More than hundred million pounds has been awarded for medical research, including innovations in technology and digital health and clinical informatics and big data. The National Institute for Health Research Oxford Biomedical Research Centre was awarded £113.7 million for 2017 to 2022, it announced on 14 September, with the funds coming from the Department of Health. 

Maidstone and Tunbridge Wells works with Xerox
The overall goal may be to make the NHS paperless at the point of care, but at Maidstone and Tunbridge Wells NHS Trust the focus had been on doing paper better. The southern hospital trust has contracted Xerox to send appointment and reminder letters to patients on its behalf.

Maidstone picked Xerox as its provider of offsite hybrid mail services under the Crown Commercial Service framework agreement RM1063. As well as automating, modifying and sending physical letters, the service integrates with Docman to generate electronic GP referral letters.