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

UniDoc Health‘s H3 Health Cube has been delivered to a hospital in Yasinya in the Ukraine, with the self-contained virtual clinic offering a customisable array of AI-equipped and traditional medicine and diagnostic tools. The hospital reopened on 14 February 2025, following a renovation, and the Health Cube will be a key feature. It is part of the Health Care for Safety and Rehabilitation project funded by the Italian Agency for Development Cooperation (AICS). The Health Cube will allow Ukrainian doctors to collaborate in real-time with Professor Carlo Ventura’s team from I.N.B.B of Bologna.

An Essex County Council project has seen more than 316 Vayyar Care 4D imaging sensors installed in care homes, sheltered accommodation and private homes in the county, to protect the most vulnerable to falls. Phase one of the project commenced in 2023 and included the largest single deployment of its kind in the UK, with 138 sensors installed at Foxburrow Grange residential care home. In the last 12 months, there have been no fall-related hospital admissions recorded in the properties that are part of the project. The 4D imaging tech can detect even the most subtle signs of a fall and automatically raise an alarm. Phase 2 of the project will start early this year and will see Vayyar Care work in partnership with Alcove Health.

Dawn Health, a Danish health tech supplier, has launched a new app for breast cancer patients, allowing them to track their health and stay informed about their treatments. The Cora BC app was developed in collaboration with Novartis, and although initially launched in Germany, there are plans to expand to the UK, Canada and Australia. The app’s functionality will include the ability to send medication and appointment reminders, carry out regular check-ins, make diary entries ahead of future consultations and to visualise patient progress. It will also support breast cancer patients to access key information and advice to support their health.

A contract worth £386,600 has been awarded to Kooth Digital Health by NHS North Central London ICB for its online counselling and support service for children and young people. The contract is set to commence on 1 April 2025 and run for a year. The ICB will offer Kooth’s services to people aged 11-18, and for vulnerable people up to the age of 25. It will enable users to access support and connect young people with qualified counsellors for mental health support.

New cardiac monitors have been installed at Croydon University Hospital and are saving Croydon Health Services NHS Trust almost five hours per patient per week, and around £50,000 on consumables. The technology was part of a £15 million investment in the hospital’s new ITU, which opened at the end of 2023. Ten Mostcare Up Haemodynamic monitors were installed from Vygon UK, following a trial at the hospital. Compared to the previous technology the new monitors require no calibration – saving time – and have no consumable costs associated.

Did you know

According to L&G Retail’s first instalment of its third Chief Medical Officer report, there has been a 79% year-on-year increase in employees using its digital health services.

The third CMO report will be published in four instalments over 2025, and focuses on different aspects of digital health.

The first instalment focuses on the role of digital health in prevention, early intervention and inclusion and includes new data from L&G’s expert partners, Spectrum.Life and Teledoc Health.

According to the report 62% of employees who use L&G’s Virtual GP service said it has helped them avoid time off work, while 57% of employees who have used Online Physiotherapy during a period of absence reported a swifter return to work.

Though who benefitted from Structured Counselling, as part of the Employee Assistance Programme, experienced a 29% decrease in presenteeism and a 21% reduction in absenteeism.

What we’re reading

In a new white paper published by Kidney Beam, a case is set out for deploying a digital health intervention that supports people with CKD/CKM conditions to maintain physical health to improve their health-related quality of life.

Authored by Professor Sharlene Greenwood, Kings College Hospital London, Kidney Beam, the report states that a digital health tool would be cheaper to deliver in comparison to in-person rehabilitation programmes.

According to Swart Evaluation, an independent health economic team commissioned on behalf of Kidney Beam, the average cost reduction per patient was £580 over a targeted 12-week programme. The savings represent a reduction of between 8-12% of the average annual care cost per patient, and demonstrate a return on investment of 1:6.

 Upcoming events

February 27, The Royal Society of Medicine, London – Innovation and Technology Conference and Exhibition 2024