This week we’ve covered International Women’s Day events, the new colon capsule launched by the NHS, and a Snapchat AR collaboration on World Kidney Day, as well as many more stories in health and tech.
But there’s always more to share, so here are the rest of the best, featuring NHS staff virtual singalongs, new courses to help with resuscitation eLearning, and online training milestones for the COVID-19 vaccination programme…
Automated finance solution available to all NHS England trusts
ELFS Shared Services, which is an operating division of the Northern Care Alliance, has made its automated finance solution – Ask Accounts Payable (Ask AP) – available to all 236 trusts in NHS England and 45,000 suppliers.
ELFS uses AI technology to manage relationships between trusts and suppliers through its finance business service. The solution, a self-service portal called Ask AP, is delivered by AI company Brightmast and uses ‘intelligent automation’ to resolve queries quicker.
Graham Gornall, Managing Director of NHS ELFS Shared Services, said: “We have taken time to work with suppliers to the NHS and the NHS trusts we support to ensure that the service provided by the technology meets both of our needs. Introducing this technology needed careful thought and planning and we needed to be sure that it could perform the tasks that have previously been carried out by people without any disruption.
“Having proved the technology, we are delighted to be able to make it widely available to other NHS trusts and suppliers to the NHS.”
HEE online training for the COVID vaccination passes two million milestone
Health Education England’s (HEE) online training for the COVID-19 vaccination programme has passed the milestone of two million session launches.
Over 217,000 individual users have accessed the e-Learning for Healthcare (e-LfH) programme, which is part of the vaccination recruitment and training process, since it went live in December 2020.
The programme provides training on COVID-19, the key principles of immunisation, storing vaccines correctly, vaccine preparation and administration, as well as advice on contraindications, precautions and possible reactions to the vaccines. Healthcare professionals including many from the nursing, midwifery, medical and dental sectors, are accessing the training.
Patrick Mitchell, Director of Innovation, Digital and Transformation, Health Education England, said: “The e-LfH programme is an integral and vital part of the vaccination effort being rolled out so swiftly to protect us all against the virus.
“It’s at the heart of what we do – it’s free, easy to access and is giving people from across the health and social care workforce the knowledge they need to promote and carry out the vaccination programme with confidence.”
New mental health education app launches
TeamDoctor, a new mental health and education app, has been helping staff across a wide range of businesses to cope with COVID-19-related problems. It offers education programmes to assist users with health, fitness and wellbeing, as well as managing their mental health.
Featuring accessible course and film content, the app covers issues such as stress and anxiety, as well as other lifestyle and health topics including sleep, diet and exercise. Available 24/7, it’s designed to help employers look after staff wellbeing and boost productivity.
TeamDoctor Director Rosie Runciman, said: “It has been really inspiring working with businesses where we can make a genuine difference to the health and happiness of the staff. Health education, when done well, is a wonderful tool to change attitudes and behaviours. It has been a great privilege to work with some fantastic employees and see first hand the dedication and innovation of many HR teams.”
CNTW trust staff set the tone with virtual singing group
Staff at Cumbria, Northumberland, Tyne and Wear NHS Foundation Trust (CNTW) have created a virtual singing group to boost morale and connections during the pandemic – and to make lunchtimes a little bit more interesting.
The ‘CNTW Warblers’ group was set up by Senior Arts Therapist, Cindy-Jo Morison and Allied Health Professionals (AHP) Consultant, Julie Morrow. Sessions take place every lunchtime over Microsoft Teams and participants can switch off their microphones and/ or cameras while singing, if they want to take part but would prefer some privacy.
Cindy-Jo said: “The health benefits of singing are well-documented. It’s an effective stress reliever and can improve your mood, sleep and confidence to name a few.
“Of course, there are social benefits too. This is particularly important during this time as many of us may be shielding or working from home and missing those face-to-face interactions.”
Julie added: “After organising CNTW’s annual AHP conference and having a really positive response to a singalong we had, we thought this should be something we extend to all staff.”
This is just one of a number of staff wellbeing initiatives being offered at CNTW. Others include a regular newsletter that signposts staff to health and wellbeing resources, virtual ‘wobble rooms’ and livecasts on a range of wellbeing, sleep and stress-related topics.
Skills for Health and RCUK link up to provide resuscitation eLearning
Skills for Health and Resuscitation Council UK (RCUK) have partnered up to deliver a ‘new suite of specialised resuscitation eLearning’ for healthcare professionals.
Concerned about the pandemic’s impact on resuscitation training, the two organisations will be offering three new courses online.
The new digital courses cover the following: Resuscitation Level 3 – adult resuscitation, Resuscitation Level 2 – maternal resuscitation, and Resuscitation Level 2 – new-born resuscitation.
Adam Benson Clarke, Course Manager at RCUK, said: “Retention of cardiopulmonary resuscitation skills is poor, particularly in those who have little exposure to them. Regular short periods of practice on a manikin are therefore essential to maintain these lifesaving skills.
“However, the current restrictions associated with the pandemic have resulted in difficulties experienced by health care professionals in accessing resources for continuing resuscitation training. These digital resources help to underpin the theoretical knowledge before attending face-to-face training when safe to do so.”
Isabelle Hamilton-Bower, Course Manager at RCUK, added: “The courses also incorporate an opportunity for self-assessment to ensure understanding of this vital information. In a time-poor clinical environment, these digital resources allow healthcare professionals to access resources at times that are convenient for them.”
It is hoped the joint commitment will improve patient outcomes, through enabling staff to get better skills, jobs and competencies.
Ampersand Health makes inflammatory bowel disease app features free for all
Ampersand Health, a digital therapy company, has recently made all the features in its inflammatory bowel disease app free.
The My IBD Care app, which is for people living with the condition, will now give anyone access to its ‘behavioural-science-based digital therapeutic elements’ and ‘expert-led courses’, free of cost.
With the aim to help more people self-manage their health and care, the app was created in collaboration with specialists at King’s College Hospital NHS Foundation Trust and Barts Health NHS Trust. It enables patients to:
- Set appointment and medication reminders
- Build better habits by tracking their symptoms, activities and diet
- Communicate with, and submit information to, clinicians at hospitals that are signed-up.
It also provides digital therapeutic courses with the goal of improving patients’ mental health and quality of life through stress management, medicine adherence and sleep quality.
The app is available on both the Crown Commercial Services G-Cloud 12 Framework and the Spark DPS (Dynamic Purchasing System), as well as on the ORCHA App Library.
Babylon Continues US Expansion in California
Babylon, the global tech company, has announced the extension of its services in California, with the addition of its ‘value-based care model’ Babylon 360, as it continues its US expansion with a new partnership.
The Babylon 360 is a ‘human-centered, integrated healthcare platform’ which combines AI-powered technology with medical expertise and virtual clinical services, as well as personal care, and is designed to ’empower people’ to stay healthy.
As part of its California expansion, Babylon has reportedly made a ‘multi-million dollar investment’ in FirstChoice Medical Group. According to the company, this will connect a network of around 180 primary care providers and 1,000 specialty providers to Babylon’s ‘holistic, technology-driven approach’ that aims to make healthcare more accessible through everyday technology.
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