Artificial Intelligence

The revolution changing the face of healthcare delivery

MedInfo23: MEDITECH brings MaaS solution, powered by Google Cloud, to Australian market

11 July 2023

Electronic medical record vendor MEDITECH is bringing its MEDITECH-as-a-Service (MaaS) subscription model to the Australian market, launching the offering this week at the MedInfo conference in Sydney. MaaS is built on Google Cloud and enables the company to offer a fully managed and monitored cloud hosted solution wrapped up into a single monthly fee. MEDITECH […]

MedInfo23: MediRecords moves into outpatient clinics at MQ Health

10 July 2023

Cloud health software company MediRecords has announced it will provide the new clinical record system for MQ Health outpatient clinics and will integrate with the hospital’s TrakCare electronic medical record. MQ Health is Australia’s first university-owned teaching hospital and operates 18 outpatients clinics including breast health, cardiology, endocrinology, haematology, neuropsychology, neurology, ophthalmology, plastic and reconstructive […]

MedInfo23: Oracle Health HealtheIntent platform to detect undiagnosed diabetes

10 July 2023

Planning is underway in Australia for the implementation of Oracle Health’s (formerly Cerner) HealtheIntent data and insights platform to help detect people with undiagnosed diabetes who slip through the system. One use of the platform is an algorithm that detects asymptomatic patients with elevated HbA1c readings indicating diabetes and alerts their GPs. The algorithm searches […]

MedInfo23: Alcidion launches plug-and-play intelligent command centre

10 July 2023

ASX-listed digital health platform vendor Alcidion has partnered with hospital automation specialist Olinqua to build what it says is the world’s first plug-and-play hospital operations product, aimed at providing real-time metrics and visualisation of the current state of a healthcare facility. Launching this week at the MedInfo23 conference in Sydney, the new Miya Central product […]

Blog: Big loss for ADHA as MedInfo swings into town

7 July 2023

There have been a few rumbles of trouble at the mill that is the Australian Digital Health Agency in the last few months but that is certainly nothing new considering its history. The organisation has managed to survived several changes of government fully intact and in the last couple of years has actually put some […]

‘Direct line to primary care’ through $7.5 million Healthdirect investment

6 July 2023

The South Australian government has received $10 million in funding from the federal government for a primary care pilot project involving a nurse practitioner program and new services from Healthdirect Australia. $2.6 million of the funding will go to the nurse practitioner project, while the $7.5 million Healthdirect investment will see the establishment of two […]

National optometry dataset using big data to identify eye health trends

6 July 2023

The peak professional body for optometrists, Optometry Australia (OA), is building Australia’s first large-scale national optometry dataset using big data to identify eye health and practice trends. The organisation has developed software to extract a range of de-identified clinical information from optometry practice management systems Sunix and Optomate every six months. The data will be […]

ADHA chief technology officer Mal Thatcher resigns amid agency restructure

5 July 2023

Malcolm Thatcher, the chief technology officer in charge of the Australian Digital Health Agency’s (ADHA) multi-million dollar My Health Record modernisation program, has resigned. Professor Thatcher, a former Queensland Health CIO, joined the agency in January 2021 and was charged with overseeing the modernisation of the technology underpinning Australia’s digital health infrastructure, including its Health […]

nib Thrive gets Kynd marketplace as it expands NDIS business

5 July 2023

Health insurer nib’s subsidiary nib Thrive has bought 100 per cent of technology platform Kynd, which provides a digital marketplace for people using the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS). ASX-listed nib has been active in the NDIS market since a $158.1 million capital raise in October 2022, when it also launched the nib Thrive brand. […]

DoHAC releases round two of electronic medication chart grants

4 July 2023

The Department of Health and Aged Care has released round two of its grant program to assist residential aged care services to adopt electronic national residential medication chart (eNRMC) software. The first round of grants was released in June 2022 as a paid transitional program before fully conformant software rolls out. Grants of between $5000 […]

CSIRO and Dedalus extend reseller agreement for Ontoserver

4 July 2023

Digital health giant Dedalus has extended its reseller agreement with the CSIRO for its FHIR-native Ontoserver terminology server to offer it as a fully managed national solution. The software as a service offering from Dedalus includes cloud hosting, support, consultancy and training. Ontoserver and its FHIR terminology service APIs are used by NHS England and […]

Celo Health deploys secure messaging app for MSF worldwide

4 July 2023

New Zealand secure messaging platform Celo Health has deployed its clinical messaging app for humanitarian group Médecins Sans Frontières’ (MSF) healthcare operations globally. Celo supplies healthcare-compliant secure messaging on Android and iOS devices and desktops. Users can chat, consent and capture clinical images, and message each other from their mobile devices with patient information in […]

Peninsula Health to implement Charm Evolution for oncology management

3 July 2023

Victoria’s Peninsula Health, which operates Frankston Hospital and Rosebud Hospital, will roll out the Charm Evolution oncology information management solution from Magentus to enhance its chemotherapy services. Peninsula Health has an extensive cancer service incorporating medical oncology and haematology, chemotherapy day units (CDU), an inpatient ward, infusion centre and symptom urgent review clinic (SURC). It […]

International health IT week in review: July 2

2 July 2023

Epic integrates Nuance for ambient clinical documentation, generative AI app for healthcare, TPP battles EMIS for UK PMS market, NHS digital health check, FHIR guide for maternal health, legacy IT and security, ChatGPT for breast cancer screening, Babylon to go private again, AWS launches generative AI centre Epic announces ambient clinical documentation EHR integration EHR […]

Blog: ChatGPT blows minds while fax axe chips away

30 June 2023

We had a brief ramble a couple of weeks ago about the potential and the dangers that emerging AI like ChatGPT-4 poses for healthcare. Amid stories of AI being able to pass medical exams with ease and the reality that Dr Google may take over from real doctors in real life, we did think the […]

Patient Watch enables ‘anticipatory care’ for patients deteriorating in the community

29 June 2023

Northern Health’s Patient Watch program may be able to predict the deterioration of complex patients living in the community up to seven days before hospital admission. The medical director of Northern Health’s Hospital Without Walls and Staying Well programs Don Campbell said Patient Watch was able to identify and support the two per cent of […]

South Canterbury rolls out radiology eOrders and sign-off

29 June 2023

Te Whatu Ora South Canterbury has gone live with Sysmex New Zealand’s Eclair eOrdering solution for radiology (eRad) and its result sign-off module. South Canterbury joins the West Coast and Nelson Marlborough in recently adopting the capability. It went live in Nelson Marlborough in November 2019, where a surge in uptake was reported during the […]

SA Health to begin statewide eReferrals program using HealthLink and Salesforce

28 June 2023

SA Health will begin the first phases of its statewide electronic referrals project from August, initially implementing the system at metropolitan hospitals and the Riverland Mallee Coorong Local Health Network. The program will use the existing HealthLink platform that SA Health currently uses for secure messaging with GPs as well as a referral management system […]

Plans for bedside teleconferencing between hospital patients and GPs in northern NSW

28 June 2023

Northern NSW Local Health District is in the early stages of a new initiative enabling bedside teleconferencing between hospital patients and their GPs. Public hospitals in Tweed Heads, Murwillumbah, Byron Bay, Lismore and Ballina are expected to be part of the program, which was launched last month and will be billable through Medicare. According to […]

Tasmania completes statewide eReferral roll-out

27 June 2023

Tasmania has rolled out its statewide eReferral system to all four public hospitals as well as GPs, private medical specialists and allied health professionals. Tasmania began the project in 2020, led by the local PHN Primary Health Tasmania and using technology from HealthLink and Hobart firm Healthcare Software (HCS). It uses HealthLink’s SmartForms and HCS’s […]

Medibank still has work to do on security and data management: APRA

27 June 2023

Australia’s financial regulator plans to conduct a “targeted technology review” of the operations of Medibank Private and says the health insurer still has work to do to strengthen its security environment and data management. The Australian Prudential and Regulation Authority (APRA), which regulates Australia’s banks, superannuation funds and insurers, has imposed a $250 million increase […]

Best Practice emerges in the cloud with Omni beta release

26 June 2023

Best Practice Software has announced it is in beta testing with its long-awaited cloud-hosted solution, formerly known as Project Titanium but now named Omni, for allied health, general practice and specialist medical practice users in Australia and New Zealand. Best Practice has been planning for a number of years to release a cloud-based version of […]

Faxed referrals to My Aged Care to be decommissioned from July

26 June 2023

Faxed referrals to the My Aged Care system from GPs and community health services will be decommissioned from the end of next month in a long-awaited move by the Department of Health and Aged Care. Referrals by phone and through the My Aged Care website will continue, along with electronic referrals through practice management software. […]

Magentus appoints Christopher Ladds as APAC CEO

26 June 2023

Magentus, the new name for the global healthcare software conglomerate formed from the consolidation of Citadel Health, Genie Solutions and Wellbeing Software, has appointed its first Asia Pacific CEO in Christopher Ladds. Reporting to Magentus Group CEO Mark McConnell, Mr Ladds will oversee the local operations of Citadel’s laboratory information system Evolution vLab and its […]

International health IT week in review: June 25

25 June 2023

Information blocking persists, AI for hospital waiting lists, London’s shared care record, NHS mandate for EMRs, patients remain open to virtual primary care, clinical data registries and data collection, Cerner layoffs over VA EHR contract, ChatGPT-4 and complex diagnoses Almost half of hospitals report instances of perceived information blocking EHR Intelligence ~ Sarai Rodriguez ~ […]

Blog: Digital twins in the Pilbara: new technology for ancient needs

23 June 2023

The cynics amongst us will perhaps agree that giving certain politicians and certain business people purporting to be philanthropists free rein with large amounts of grant money is fraught with peril. The latest shiny object tends to catch their eye, and vast funds tend to be wasted chasing pipe dreams rather than practical projects. Nowhere […]

SA Health’s My Home Hospital has cared for 8000 people at home and in residential care

23 June 2023

South Australia’s My Home Hospital (MyHH) services has cared for almost 8000 patients since its launch in January 2021, including 900 people living in residential aged care facilities, and has recently expanded its catchment to beyond metropolitan Adelaide to Gawler, Mount Barker and some towns in the southern Fleurieu Peninsula. Operated on behalf of SA […]

MUH implements EpiSoft eReferrals integration with TrakCare

22 June 2023

Sydney’s Macquarie University Hospital (MUH) has become the first TrakCare site in Australia to implement an integration with EpiSoft’s eReferrals hospital bookings system and doctor portal. MUH first rolled out EpiSoft’s patient eAdmissions portal epi-me in 2020 to digitise its patient pre-admission process, including informed financial consent. The hospital then undertook a change management program […]

MedInfo23: Aged care medication roundtable to trial digital nudge interventions

21 June 2023

A national aged care medication roundtable established last year to identify problem areas in medication use in aged care, particularly polypharmacy, antipsychotics and antibiotics, is set to trial innovative digital interventions to try to improve outcomes. Members of the roundtable, including three aged care providers supported by project leads at Macquarie University and five other […]

National telehealth service with shared EHR integration planned for rural NZ communities

21 June 2023

Te Whatu Ora – Health New Zealand is looking to set up a national rural clinical telehealth service to improve access to after hours care in rural areas across the country, encouraging telehealth providers with existing IT infrastructure to partner with smaller providers already servicing rural communities. Te Whatu Ora has released a request for […]

Digital twins, digital yarning and Lyfe Languages app expand to the Pilbara

20 June 2023

Telstra Health plans to use digital twin technology to create a virtual replica of the Pilbara region of Western Australia and the Yindjibarndi people who live there to create Australia’s first synthetic chronic disease registry, while Perth’s South Metropolitan Health Service and the CSIRO will build on an existing mobile app to improve how medical […]

Rauland integrates Bluetooth low energy RTLS into Concentric Care platform

20 June 2023

Rauland Australia and New Zealand has expanded on its technology partnership with asset and patient tracking vendor Pole Star to integrate Pole Star’s Bluetooth low energy (BLE) real time location service technology into Rauland’s Concentric Care platform for hospitals and aged care. The Concentric Care platform uses a range of technologies to support mobility, voice-activation, […]

DC2Vue integrates with HealthLink to improve EHR interoperability

19 June 2023

Melbourne-based clinical software vendor Data Capture Experts (DCE) has integrated HealthLink’s secure message delivery system with its DC2Vue electronic health record (EHR). The integration will enhance healthcare providers’ ability to send referrals and receive electronic reports, including radiology, pathology reports, discharge and event summaries directly within DC2Vue EHR. DCE chief technology officer Nalaka Withanage said […]

Doug Hilton named as new head of CSIRO

19 June 2023

Molecular and cellular biologist Doug Hilton has been named as the new chief executive of the CSIRO. Professor Hilton has been the director of the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute of Medical Research (WEHI) for the past 14 years and is head of the Department of Medical Biology in the Faculty of Medicine, Dentistry and […]

International health IT week in review: June 18

18 June 2023

European parliament moves forward with first AI Act, how effective were vaccination passes? UK government’s new federated data platform, Health Service Ireland hit by MOVEit cyberattack, significant amount of churn in digital health technologies EU moves closer to passing one of world’s first laws governing AI The Guardian ~ Lisa O’Carroll ~ 15/06/2023 The European […]

Blog: Europe’s AI Act and ChatGPT in healthcare

16 June 2023

In the week that the European parliament took some very big strides towards regulating artificial intelligence through its landmark AI Act, a lot of focus is now on how consumer-grade generative AI like ChatGPT will affect healthcare. The EU is recommending a risk-based approach to AI regulation, setting out harmonised rules for the development of […]

MedInfo23: Dashboard ‘revolutionises’ diabetes management at Blacktown Hospital

15 June 2023

The designers of a diabetes dashboard pioneered at Sydney’s Blacktown Hospital say the inpatient surveillance tool has “revolutionised” diabetes management and has since been extended to Westmead Hospital. The Blacktown team will tell MedInfo23 in Sydney next month that the surveillance system and dashboard has reduced hospital readmission for diabetes patients and the time taken […]

MedInfo23: International conference on the power of digital health comes to Sydney

15 June 2023

The power of digital health is its ability to scale care and bring quality healthcare to new areas, according to the co-chair of the international MedInfo23 conference, taking place in Sydney in July. Martin Seneviratne, an internal medicine physician and former research scientist with Google Health and Google’s DeepMind, said digital health was also about […]

SA budget 2023: Child and adult virtual care services permanent, $31m for state control centre

14 June 2023

The South Australian government will allocate over $130 million in tomorrow’s state budget to two of its innovative virtual care services to help with the ramping crisis, along with $31.5m over five years for the new state control centre. SA Premier Peter Malinauskas said the Child and Adolescent Virtual Urgent Care Service (CAVUCS) that is […]

Active script lists, national prescription service conformance in Bp Orchid SP1

14 June 2023

GPs will be able to view their patients’ active script lists in the next release of the Bp Premier practice management system, which will also feature conformance with the new national prescription delivery service (PDS). A Best Practice webinar this week heard that Bp Premier Orchid Service Pack 1 (SP1) will allow prescribers to view […]

Wesfarmers Health to buy InstantScripts for $135m

13 June 2023

ASX-listed conglomerate Wesfarmers has agreed to buy digital health business InstantScripts for $135 million, adding the telehealth firm to the growing Wesfarmers Health division, which also owns several pharmacy groups. Wesfarmers Health was set up in March 2022 following the acquisition of Australian Pharmaceutical Industries (API), which owned the 470-strong Priceline Pharmacy banner group and […]

Media exec to head up Healthengine following departure of Marcus Tan

13 June 2023

The managing director of The Guardian newspaper’s Australian operations Dan Stinton has been appointed as the new CEO of online appointment booking service and directory Healthengine. He will take over in August from long-term CEO and founder Marcus Tan, who is stepping down after 15 years. Dr Tan will continue as Healthengine’s interim medical director […]

Economist and public servant Blair Comley named as DoHAC secretary

13 June 2023

Former NSW Department of Premier and Cabinet head Blair Comley is rejoining the public service, named today as the secretary of the Department of Health and Aged Care. Mr Comley takes over from current secretary Brendan Murphy, who has retired. Mr Comley is an economist by training who held a range of senior positions in […]

GPs can upload advance care plans to My Health Record in Best Practice

12 June 2023

GPs using Best Practice software can now upload their patients’ advance care planning documents to their My Health Record as a PDF. Patients and their carers have been able to upload advance care directives to their own records since 2016, but the new functionality allows their GPs to do the upload. Both internally created documents […]

BetterConsult used for CKD risk using pre-consult clinical questionnaire

12 June 2023

Digital health firm HealthShare has partnered with AstraZeneca to promote a new chronic kidney disease risk initiative using HealthShare’s BetterConsult pre-consultation clinical questionnaire. The CKD initiative, which HealthShare says has been reviewed and approved by an independent GP clinical panel, uses the BetterConsult questionnaire to identify cohorts of patients who are more at risk of […]

Study looking at AI solution for chest x-ray interpretation in the ED

12 June 2023

Doctors who have worked in an emergency department in the last 12 months are being recruited for a new study looking at whether the annalise.ai chest x-ray solution can improve interpretation accuracy and potentially change patient management compared to standard practice. The Digital Health Co-operative Research Centre (DHCRC)-funded study is being led by researchers from […]

International health IT week in review: June 11

11 June 2023

WHO launches global digital health certification network, India calls for repository of digital platforms, older Americans plan to use digital health to age in place, NHS England procurement framework for GP IT, Apple’s Health app added to iPads, proposed framework to assess evidence for digital health interventions WHO launches global digital health network based on […]

Blog: Silly money still around for telehealth companies despite market failures

9 June 2023

It was a big week for health IT companies and software vendors in Australia and New Zealand, both good and bad. On the positive side, Foxo’s nifty little comms app for linking patients and external referrers to healthcare enterprises through Microsoft Teams was our top story, and HealthLink had a win with the extension of […]

Hills calls in administrators after Western Sydney patient infotainment system lawsuit loss

9 June 2023

ASX-listed Hills Ltd has gone into administration following the loss of a multi-year lawsuit over the proceeds of a 2014 contract for a patient infotainment system for the Western Sydney Local Health District. Hills’ health IT division Hills Health Solutions won a long-standing Federal Court case last year brought by Sydney-based Stellar Vision Operations. The […]

MedInfo23: eMM and medication administration errors under the spotlight

8 June 2023

An Australian study has found that adding an electronic medication management module to a paediatric hospital’s clinical information system did not reduce medication administration errors, with no change in rates of potentially serious errors in the first 70 days after it replaced paper medication charts. The study, led by Johanna Westbrook from the Centre for […]

My Emergency Doctor buys GP2U as UK owner retreats from Australian market

7 June 2023

Australian telemedicine provider My Emergency Doctor has bought Hobart-based GP2U Telehealth for $3 million, taking it off the hands of struggling ASX-listed, UK-headquartered Doctor Care Anywhere, which bought GP2U for $11m less than two years ago. Doctor Care Anywhere (DCU) is one of the UK’s largest telehealth providers with backing from health insurer AXA, and […]

MedInfo23: Trial shows LIV app creates care circle for people with dementia

7 June 2023

A free app designed to support independence at home by assisting people with chronic conditions and their carers has been found in a pilot trial to help dementia patients and their caregivers. Sydney-based digital development studio Miroma Project Factory received an Australian Department of Health and Aged Care grant to build the care at home […]

Beamtree’s AI-powered early warning system reduces mortality and length of stay

6 June 2023

The artificial intelligence-powered advance warning system for patient deterioration developed at the Sydney Adventist Hospital to improve on NSW Health’s Between the Flags program has been shown to cut preventable deaths and the length of time patients have to stay in hospital. Known as the Ainsoff Deterioration Index (ADI), the technology was developed by two […]

eHealth NSW adds video feature to MedSync app for clinical image sharing

6 June 2023

eHealth NSW has added a video capability to its MedSync clinical image sharing app, allowing clinicians to upload and share 60-second videos and link them to the patient’s medical record. MedSync was developed by eHealth NSW in partnership with Microsoft, enabling clinical staff to collaborate statewide on clinical cases, sharing photos and comments via instant […]

Foxo launches clinical and patient messaging app integrated with Microsoft Teams

6 June 2023

Clinical communications specialist Foxo has launched a new app integrated with Microsoft Teams that will allow healthcare organisations to seamlessly connect patients with their network of referrers and external providers on an enterprise level. The app enables task and role-based communication for healthcare providers within Teams but also leverages Foxo’s capabilities to use SMS and […]

NSW Health rolling out SmartForm outpatient eReferrals to majority of LHDs

5 June 2023

NSW Health is expanding its Engage Outpatients digital referral management solution to most of its local health districts (LHDs), using HealthLink’s SmartForm and secure messaging technology and an electronic referral management system (eRMS) co-developed with eHealth NSW. The solution has been trialled by several LHDs over the last few years and will be available to […]

HCF to trial QR code claiming through HICAPS Trinity terminals

5 June 2023

Health insurer HCF is trialling the use of QR codes for fund members when making on-the-spot claims for extras with allied health providers using HICAPS’ new Trinity terminals. The contactless QR code claims are currently being trialled in a pilot by HCF staff and National Australia Bank corporate members, and if successful, will be available […]

International health IT week in review: June 4

4 June 2023

Staffing problems hit UK virtual wards, Canada’s EMR woes, US primary care doctors and telehealth, digital front door pain points, Facebook data transfers and NHS, EMIS outages hit UK GPs, how voice tech and AI could help burnout, US hospital EMR market share NHS body says England can’t staff virtual hospital wards Bloomberg ~ Ali […]

Blog: Opening the digital front door in healthcare

2 June 2023

Having kicked along the use of virtual care in a hurry, the COVID-19 pandemic also helped kick open the concept of the digital front door in healthcare. IDC predicts that this year, 65 per cent of US patients will have accessed care through a digital front door, and the concept has well and truly arrived […]

Dedalus targets ANZ with ORBIS cloud-enabled electronic medical record

1 June 2023

Global health IT firm Dedalus is bringing its ORBIS EMR, Europe’s market leading electronic medical record, to the Australian and New Zealand markets, promising a cloud-enabled, modular system that users can configure to their own requirements. ORBIS has been in the European market for 25 years and is the leading EMR in Germany and France, […]

Medical Board rules out asynchronous prescribing except by usual doctor

1 June 2023

Doctors should not prescribe medications or “provide healthcare” to patients without a real-time direct consultation, whether in person or by telehealth, the Medical Board of Australia has ruled. In guidelines due to come into effect from September 1, the board has ruled that asynchronous requests for medications – usually through online questionnaires or live chat, […]

Australian Unity to roll out Telstra Health resident care management suite

31 May 2023

Australian mutual society, health insurer and aged care provider Australian Unity is rolling out Telstra Health’s software across two of its residential aged care facilities in Melbourne, including Telstra Health’s clinical and resident management suite. Work has begun to implement Telstra Health’s Clinical Manager, CareKeeper, Resident Manager, Message Manager and Data Warehouse products at Australian […]

Monash IVF Group streamlining patient journey through digital patient pathways

31 May 2023

ASX-listed assisted reproductive technologies provider Monash IVF Group has rolled out a digital front door solution using technology from Personify Care to support the patient journey through bespoke digital patient pathways. It has synched data collected in its patient administration systems with Personify Care’s platform using the Adelaide company’s interoperability capabilities. When a patient is […]

Orion Health’s three-pillar strategy for unified healthcare through a digital front door

30 May 2023

After several tough years following its delisting from the New Zealand and Australian stock exchanges, global digital health software vendor Orion Health has developed a new strategy for growth, focusing on three of its key strengths in the digital health space. These are the emerging concept of the healthcare digital front door, its large market […]

Telstra Health launches FHIR-native virtual care solution with PROMs and PREMs

30 May 2023

Telstra Health has launched what it says is Australia’s first Fast Healthcare Interoperability Resources (FHIR) native virtual care solution, aimed at hospital in the home, rehab in the home, remote chronic disease management and palliative care programs. Branded as the Telstra Health Virtual Health Platform, it is an evolution of Telstra Health‘s existing virtual health […]

NSW Health signs on with PCA as proof of concept with Medicare continues

29 May 2023

NSW Health is one of the big names that have signed up to receive information from Provider Connect Australia (PCA), the new service from the Australian Digital Health Agency (ADHA) that promises to streamline the updating of healthcare provider details and which will open for all organisations from July. NSW Health joins the National Health […]

Medical Board to red light telehealth prescribing without prior consult: report

29 May 2023

The Medical Board of Australia is expected to issue a final rule this week on its recommendation against online prescribing of medications without a prior or in-person consultation. The final guidelines are expected this week and will come into force later in the year, according to a report in Channel Nine newspapers today. The decision […]

Aged care assessments may be added to My Health Record for in-home care

29 May 2023

Interoperability between My Health Record and the My Aged Care system may be a little closer following the announcement of funding for the Australian Digital Health Agency to work on adding aged care assessments to the MyHR as part of the new measures for in-home aged care support in the 2023 federal budget. ADHA’s senior […]

International health IT week in review: May 28

28 May 2023

Generative AI tools in EMRs for patient admin, remote monitoring in Scotland, big guns join TECFA health information sharing network in US, WHO urges caution with healthcare AI deployments, health IT advocacy group EHI winds down operations after 22 years UNC Health to implement generative AI tools through EHR integration EHR Intelligence ~ Hannah Nelson […]

Blog: Focus returns to My Health Record with secure funding commitments

26 May 2023

My Health Record and the Australian Digital Health Agency came out on top in the recent federal budget, scoring the lion’s share of the $950 million in funding announced to great fanfare but little real detail. The funding is great news for ADHA, which has been guaranteed ongoing funding over the foreseeable future, and for […]

WA hospitals switch from paper to digital as statewide EMR investment case builds

26 May 2023

The WA Department of Health is rolling out its digital medical record (DMR) across all public hospitals and has gone live in a number of new sites this year as a precursor to the eventual purchase of an electronic medical record that will be implemented statewide. The department has been working with Health Support Services […]

GenoVic becomes Genomical for clinical genomic information management

26 May 2023

The GenoVic genomics information management platform developed by the Melbourne Genomic Health Alliance has been updated and rebranded as Genomical, a common platform for genomic data management that is also a clinical system to support real-world genomic testing. The current system is used by the Victorian Clinical Genetics Service, Royal Melbourne Hospital, the Australian Genome […]

Guidelines for adopting and using My Health Record in residential aged care released

24 May 2023

A plain English guideline to the adoption and use of My Health Record in residential aged care facilities has been released, providing concise information and guidance for RACFs on the appropriate use of the system. Developed by the Aged Care Industry Information Technology Council (ACIITC) in association with the Australian Digital Health Agency (ADHA), the […]

Sydney North signs up 60 RACFs for virtual care service using Health Teams

24 May 2023

Sixty residential aged care facilities in northern Sydney have signed up to use a secure video consultation and remote vital signs monitoring system developed by local company Health Teams. The program is being funded through a $1.1 million funding package from the federal government and provided by the local PHN, Sydney North Health Network (SNHN), […]

$13 million plan to mandate ‘by default’ reporting to My Health Record

23 May 2023

The Australian government is funding a two-year initiative to ensure the sharing of key information to the My Health Record system by default, beginning with pathology and diagnostic imaging reports. $13.1 million was set aside in the recent federal budget for the initiative, which the government says will fund sector collaboration to inform policy development, […]

Victorian budget 2023: Ongoing funding for VVED in COVID debt reduction budget

23 May 2023

The Victorian Virtual Emergency Department has received ongoing funding in today’s state budget as part of a $201.5 million allocation over four years for system-wide improvements to support timely emergency care. Funding has been provided to increase Ambulance Victoria’s capacity to respond to growing demand for ambulance services across the state through initiatives such as […]

InterSystems’ Health Connect Cloud in the AWS Marketplace

23 May 2023

EMR and interoperability platform vendor InterSystems has made its HealthShare Health Connect Cloud integration engine available in the Amazon Web Services Marketplace. AWS Marketplace is a digital catalogue with thousands of software listings from independent software vendors that to buy, test and deploy software that runs on AWS. InterSystems launched HealthShare Health Connect Cloud as […]

October start date expected for $100m MyMedicare voluntary patient enrolment scheme

22 May 2023

The federal government is aiming to go live with the first iteration of its new MyMedicare voluntary patient enrolment system in October, with the scheme to ramp up over three years from next July to identify and connect with frequent hospital users. Almost $100 million over four years was announced in this month’s federal budget […]

Manage My Health integrates with My Health Account identity verification

22 May 2023

New Zealand patient and provider portal vendor Manage My Health has integrated with the government’s My Health Account digital health identity service. The integration means patients can confirm their digital identity and register for Manage My Health by using My Health Account, which was first released by Te Whatu Ora – Health New Zealand for […]

International health IT week in review: May 21

21 May 2023

US DVA beefs up $10b Oracle Cerner contract, automated patient registrations for NHS GPs, US FTC ups scrutiny of digital health apps, French health portal Doctissimo fined for breaches of personal data, remote medications administration, voice assistant integrated with Epic, Ontario eHub HIE, defence against QR code ‘quishing’ VA renegotiates $10B Oracle Cerner EHR contract […]

Blog: Virtual care has come of age in a hurry

19 May 2023

There’s little doubt that the Victorian Virtual Emergency Department (VVED) has been one of the most unexpected but impressive outcomes from the COVID pandemic, having grown from a small offering for the local catchment from Northern Hospital in November 2020 to a statewide implementation in 2022 and now racking up over 100,000 consultations to date. […]

Mater eConsultant service gives GPs fast access to specialist care

18 May 2023

The researchers behind an electronic referral service that enables GPs to receive specialist advice about patients via secure messaging hope the program will extend to more rural and remote areas throughout Queensland by the year’s end. The Queensland eConsultant Partnership Program (QePP) allows GPs to tap into specialist advice from remote Mater Health specialists who […]

NZ budget 2023: $99m for winter health plan, $5 script co-pay axed

18 May 2023

The New Zealand government has allocated $NZ99 million to its winter health response in today’s budget as part of a focus for the health portfolio on “winter, workforce and waitlists”. The government has dropped the $5 co-payment for prescriptions medications, which Health Minister Ayesha Verrall said would help reduce the demand on hospitals and other […]

D’Ath out as health minister in Queensland reshuffle

18 May 2023

Queensland Health Minister Yvette D’Ath has returned to her former portfolio of Attorney General and Minister for Justice in a cabinet reshuffle announced today by Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk. Ms D’Ath has swapped portfolios with Shannon Fentiman, a solicitor and former Minister for Communities, Women and Youth, Minister for Child Safety and Minister for Multicultural Affairs. […]

PPMP buys Better Clinics for SaaS option, gears up for My Health Record

17 May 2023

Allied health practice management software specialist PPMP has bought the Better Clinics and BetterHQ platforms from ASX-listed online accounting software firm Reckon, with plans to consolidate the offerings for allied health practices. PPMP, which provides practice management solutions to more than 10,000 practitioners in clinics in Australia and internationally, says it is the leading supplier […]

Shexie integrates Dragon into web app for dictation on the go

17 May 2023

Medical specialist practice management software vendor Shexie has extended its partnership with speech recognition software firm Nuance to integrate Dragon’s mobile speech app into the Shexie Platinum EMR web app for iOS and Android. The new option will allow users to dictate their letters via their mobile phone through Shexie’s app rather than having to […]

BPAC integrates with Novari for bi-directional eReferral workflow management

17 May 2023

Novari Health and BPAC Clinical Solutions have worked together to integrate Novari’s referral management software with BPAC’s secure electronic referral system. The bi-directional integration will enable clinicians using the BPAC eReferral system to transmit referrals from within their practice management software to private and public healthcare providers using the Novari referral management solution. Not-for-profit BPAC’s […]

Victoria’s virtual emergency department tops 100,000 consults

16 May 2023

The Victorian Virtual Emergency Department (VVED) has facilitated more than 100,000 patient consultations since its inception two and a half years ago. The service is now helping homeless people along with the public, aged care residents, ambulance patients, people with disability and people from the culturally and linguistically diverse communities. The service was first launched […]

Royal Melbourne trialling investigational vital signs device in ward and at home

16 May 2023

Royal Melbourne Hospital is running a small trial of an ambient health scanner device from French-American developer Norbert Health that can detect and record patients’ vital signs including heart rate, oxygen saturation and temperature. The contactless device is being trialled at Royal Melbourne’s Acute Care of the Elderly (ACE) ward and will also begin a […]

Northern Health expands Medical Community Virtual Consult service statewide

15 May 2023

Melbourne’s Northern Health has expanded its innovative Medical Community Virtual Consult (MCVC) service to GPs statewide after a successful launch last year, which has seen a reduction in the need for in-person referrals to specialists. The service, closely aligned with Northern Health’s Victorian Virtual Emergency Department (VVED) initiative, is also available to GPs seeing patients […]

Healthily launches GoShare Voice, partners with Western Sydney LHD for Long COVID

15 May 2023

Digital patient education specialist Healthily has launched a new conversational voice AI solution called GoShare Voice that enables outbound and inbound phone calls with patients in multiple languages to provide information, surveys and patient support. Healthily is working with Western Sydney Local Health District (WSLHD) to use the technology to develop online and voice AI […]

Arcare rolls out eNRMC meds management system across 50 sites

15 May 2023

Residential aged care provider Arcare Aged Care has rolled out Bestmed’s electronic national residential medication chart (eNRMC) medication management system across the group’s 50 residences in Victoria, Queensland and NSW. The implementation began in November 2022 and all residences are now live with the software, which is used to electronically prescribe medicines in residential care […]

International health IT week in review: May 14

14 May 2023

Babylon Health shares tumble as disastrous US strategy fails, how generative AI can help healthcare processes and clinical workflows, ransomware’s ripple effect on neighbouring health systems, MySaskHealthRecord mobile app rolls out, vendors need to keep their integration promises, ChatGPT and administrative duties Babylon shareholders wiped out in restructuring deal Financial Times ~ Ivan Levingston, Robert […]

Blog: Good return for MyHR, ADHA and WA health IT in generous budgets

12 May 2023

The federal budget handed down on Tuesday evening ticked a lot of boxes for the health and aged care sectors and was warmly welcomed by most, not the least by many aged care workers who will receive a decent wage at last. GPs seemed happy enough with the tripling of the bulk-billing incentive and the […]

WA budget 2023: DMR, EMR, virtual care and smart referrals in the money

11 May 2023

Almost $100 million has been allocated to the completion of stage one of Western Australia’s electronic medical records (EMR) project in this year’s state budget, with an additional $8.2 million spent on its electronic referral management system and money already announced for its WA Virtual Emergency Department (WAVED) program. Continued funding of $24.4 million for […]

Alfred Health looks for a universal view of clinical images through its EMR

11 May 2023

Melbourne’s Alfred Health has revealed details of its extensive enterprise imaging repository (AH EIR) project, which has the big ambition of making any clinical image available to be looked at from a single viewer integrated into the health service’s electronic medical record, using a single log-in at the point of care. Alfred Health has issued […]

Fred IT to host national electronic prescription service through eRx

10 May 2023

Fred IT Group has won the contract to deliver the national electronic prescription delivery service (PDS) on behalf of the Department of Health and Aged Care. Funding of $111.8 million over four years and $24.2 million ongoing to provide electronic prescription delivery infrastructure and services was announced in yesterday’s federal budget. This follows the issuing […]

Safety concerns with AI-enabled medical devices in the real world

10 May 2023

Patient harm is more likely to result from human error than technical problems when usingartificial intelligence (AI)-enabled medical devices, a review by Australian researchers shows. The study revealed that problems with how the devices are used and what they are used for are the main ways patients suffer harm. The study of safety events in […]

Budget 2023: $429m for My Health Record modernisation, permanent funding for ADHA

9 May 2023

The modernisation program for the My Health Record system received a big boost in today’s federal budget, receiving $429 million over two years to build a new national repository platform and investment to improve the sharing of pathology and diagnostic imaging data. The funding compares to the last budget allocation in 2021, which saw it […]

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