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

📣 NHS Cambridgeshire & Peterborough Integrated Care System (ICS) is asking patients and local NHS users for feedback on how it can improve access to services as it begins planning a new digital platform. The ICS is in the early stages of developing an online solution for accessing care information and services, with the aim of making it easier for service users to get the information and support they need. Feedback is being collected through an online survey to understand what currently works well and what could improve patient experiences in the future.

🔬Health charity Scleroderma & Raynaud’s UK is looking for 10,000 people to take part in a 60-second survey that could help unlock new diagnoses and treatments for Raynaud’s and other autoimmune conditions. The online test is designed to reveal whether participants could be suffering from Raynaud’s, with those suspected of having the condition then being invited to take part in a medical survey and download SRUK’s symptom tracker app, data from which will help inform scientific research.

🧑‍⚕️Frimley Health NHS Foundation Trust says it has been able to help 14% more patients per month prepare for surgery thanks to a new digital waiting list tool provided by Graphnet Health. Part of Graphnet’s CIPHA population health platform and integrated into Connected Care, the Frimley Health and Care Integrated Care System shared care record, the tool supports earlier recovery and safer discharge at Heatherwood Hospital in Ascot, while minimising surgery cancellations and postponements

🤝 Cardiff and Vale University Health Board has renewed its seven-year managed equipment service contract with Canon Medical Systems UK for a third time. The contract, which will now run until 2031, covers the provision, maintenance and replacement of ultrasound systems, as well as face-to-face and online training for around 250 health board clinicians. The 20-year partnership has resulted in 100% clinical uptime on equipment, Canon Medical said.

💰 The Health Innovation Network South London, Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust and King’s College London have been awarded a £1.3 million grant to determine the effectiveness of digital weight management tools. The three-year study will focus on the clinical and cost-effectiveness of Roczen‘s weight management platform for people with obesity in south East London. The project will begin in November 2024, with funding coming via the National Institute for Health and Care Research Invention for Innovation Programme.

❓Did you know?

Generative AI could help the NHS deliver an additional 3.7 million GP appointments each week within the next 10 years by automating administrative tasks, according to a report from Pubic First commissioned by Google Cloud. 

The report estimates that AI adoption across the NHS could potentially generate up to £38bn in annual savings for the UK public sector by 2030. These efficiencies could help tackle critical challenges such as workforce shortages and growing care backlogs, it says.

The report also highlights the potential for AI to support faster data analysis and early diagnostics, enabling more streamlined care delivery and better patient outcomes.

📖 What we’re reading

‘The Innovation Ecosystem Programme‘ report, published by NHS England on 25 November 2024, examines how the UK can position itself as a global leader in healthcare innovation by strengthening ties between the NHS and the life sciences sector.

The report argues that, despite the NHS’s reputation for pioneering in fields such as genomic medicine and AI-assisted diagnostics, systemic issues like fragmentation and workforce shortages prevent patients from realising the full benefits of these technologies. 

The report advocates for a more integrated approach where innovation is embedded into core NHS strategies and driven by leadership, as well as supporting patients in community settings and prioritising preventative care. In his foreword, Roland Sinker, chief executive of Cambridge University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust and national director for Life Sciences at NHSE, said that “the scale of the opportunity is huge and wide ranging,” but warned that the impact of inaction was already being seen.

“If we do not address these issues patients will not get earlier access to innovations, and they may not get access at all.

“We are starting to see companies planning not to launch medical devices in the UK. Some innovations arising from publicly funded research are benefitting patients in other markets but not here,” Sinker said.

He added: “Realising the opportunities will require a greater scale of ambition, with the funding, long-term planning and support to match.”

🚨 Upcoming events

3 December, online – AI in Women’s Health