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

🔎 Researchers from the University of Bristol, UWE Bristol and St George’s University Hospital NHS Foundation Trust have secured £1.3 million in funding to evaluate the musculoskeletal self-management app, getUBetter. The app is already used by the NHS to support people with low back pain, however it is not well known how such tools help patients self-manage their symptoms. The project aims to assess this and determine if the app offers the NHS good value for money. The findings will help inform guidance around self-management apps.

💊 Royal Aberdeen Children’s Hospital is testing an “intelligent” bedside medicine cabinet that alerts patients and their guardians when it is time to take their medication. NHS Grampian’s Innovation Hub was approached to see if it could support the trial at the end of 2023. While it is not suitable for every patient or every medicine, the cabinet can improve patients’ understanding of their medicines and encourage independence and self-care, the health board said.

🥽 A €7.8 million (£6.5m) initiative called VR Health Champions has launched in Europe to help accelerate the adoption of extended reality (XR) technologies, including virtual reality and augmented reality. The three-year, pan-European programme includes 18 partners from eight EU nations, who will work together to drive Europe’s XR ecosystem and boost uptake in healthcare settings. VR Health Champions is co-funded by the European Regional Development Fund’s interregional innovation investment instrument.

♥️ Three out of four cardiac centres in Scotland are now using a digital solution designed to deliver better patient outcomes for patients undergoing heart surgery. Developed by Glasgow-based company CardioPrecision, the CoreVista system provides surgeons with a high-definition monitor positioned in their line of sight, enabling more precise endoscopic vessel harvesting. This minimally invasive procedure only requires a small incision, causing less pain, improving recovery times and reducing the risk of infection.

🩻 Expanded community diagnostic services at Crawley Hospital has enabled Surrey and Sussex Healthcare NHS Trust to deliver more than 100,000 tests within the first 18 months of opening. The trust’s diagnostic services, which includes CT scans, X-rays, ultrasounds, blood and respiratory tests, were expanded in April 2023 after plans for the new Community Diagnostic Centre (CDC) were green-lit under a national NHS programme. The final phase of the Crawley CDC project is expected in 2026.

❓Did you know?

AI analysis can predict flare-ups of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) a week in advance, according to a study published in the journal ERJ Open Research.

Researchers from the University of Leicester developed a urine test that measures five biomarkers linked to COPD symptoms. Using neural networks, they analysed daily test results from 105 COPD patients, finding that the AI tool could reliably forecast a flare-up seven days before symptoms appeared.

Professor Chris Brightling, who led the study, said the approach could transform COPD care by enabling personalised treatments to prevent or reduce the impact of flare-ups. The study was supported by the National Institute for Health and Social Care Leicester Biomedical Research Centre.

📖 What we’re reading

An article written by Telegraph journalist Ben Farmer highlights how digital technology is helping tackle critical gaps in Africa’s health systems.

The tech startup boom promising to revolutionise healthcare in Africa, published on 26 November 2024,  includes profiles of companies like Chefaa, an Egyptian pharmacy delivery app born from the founders’ struggles to access essential medication. With more than 2.1 million users, the app is helping to address the country’s fragmented pharmacy networks and a lack of digital infrastructure by matching users with pharmacies that have the medicines they need and offering delivery services.

Nigeria-based firm Figorr uses internet-linked sensors to track medical shipments and address supply chain issues – such as temperature and humidity – that contribute to spoilage and losses.

Farmer notes that uptake of digital health services in Africa has been boosted by rising internet penetration. The World Bank estimates that more than 160 million Africans gained broadband access between 2019 and 2022, while nearly 200 million began making or receiving digital payments between 2014 and 2021, Farmer says.

🚨 Upcoming events

4–6 December, Bruges, Belgium – Healthtech Investor Summit