Digital Health Coffee Time Briefing ☕

Your morning summary of digital health news, information and events to know about if you want to be “in the know”. 

???? News 

???? Following on from Virgin Media O2 Business’s latest health report, Bridging the digital gap in UK healthcare, the company has launched an integrated connectivity package which will include access to digital explore workshops and mobile health checks for all UK NHS trusts – regardless of whether they are a Virgin Media O2 Business customer. The firm says that the solutions are designed to help trusts implement new technologies to improve efficiencies.

???? Research from NHS England, published in May 2024, has revealed that four out of five patients surveyed believe NHS systems to be vulnerable to cyberattacks. In addition, 49% strongly believe that the NHS could make a mistake when handling their data, with half of those surveyed agreeing to some degree that the NHS could sell their data to third parties without their permission.

???? Oireachtas Health Committee has called the Irish Department of Health and the Health Service Executive (HSE) to account for its failure to publish the new national digital health strategy, Pulse+IT has reported. The Digital Health Strategic Framework was due to be published in September, before it was pushed to March this year. At a sitting of the committee in early May, HSE chief operations officer Damien McCallion said the framework is now complete and will be put to government “imminently”.

???? Representatives from Austrian and European health-tech organisations visited Imperial College London in April 2024 to learn about innovation and research on digital health. The visit was part of the EU Development of E-Health Solutions Improving Resilience in Europe (DESIRE) project which is facilitating access to European digital health markets through support services.

???? Norfolk and Norwich University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust has paid out £47,000 in compensation over data breaches – the second highest amount of any NHS trust in the UK, the BBC has reported. The payments were made to five claimants between 2020 and 2023. Four of the claims related to patient data, with the fifth being a “contractual issue”.

❓Did you know that?

Researchers from the Oxford Internet Institute have concluded that using the internet could be good for your wellbeing. An international study, published on 13 May 2024, found a positive link between life satisfaction and internet use.

???? What we’re reading

Ahead of the Imperial-LSE symposium on Generative AI and The Knowledge Economy, this blog from the London School of Economics and Political Science looks at how AI could revolutionise NHS healthcare.

???? Upcoming events  

17 May 2024,  Glasgow, Scotland – NHS West of Scotland Healthcare Innovation Day