Healthcare Roundup

Seven days in the NHS and health IT

Sunak delivers spring statement

Chancellor Rishi Sunak delivered a spring statement to the Commons on Wednesday, amid warnings that living standards are “set for a historic fall” amid rising inflation and uncertainty about the impact of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine (The Guardian). Sunak said the Health and Social Care Levy announced last September would go ahead because “the money is needed now”; but then announced a 1p cut in income tax in two-years’ time. Economic experts said this would shift the cost of paying for health and care towards people in employment and away from those with unearned income; which the Institute of Fiscal Studies described as “less equitable and less efficient.”

Sunak told MPs that the Office for Budget responsibility expects inflation to reach 7.2% this year. In a pre-spring statement briefing, the IFS said rising inflation will be bad news for the NHS, because it will erode the value of the spending settlement in the October budget, which was made in cash terms. It will also put pressure on wages, at a time when the health service has 110,000 vacancies. Meanwhile, public health experts noted that Sunak’s decision to leave benefits untouched and to do little to avert the “cost of living crisis” is likely to push more people into poverty and undermine prevention efforts.

NHS told to make ‘unprecedented’ efficiency savings

Ahead of the spring statement (above) Rishi Sunak told papers that he was doubling the annual efficiency target for the NHS, from 1.1% to 2.2%, as part of a new drive to reduce waste in the public sector. However, the Health Service Journal reported that some trusts with underlying deficits are facing efficiency savings targets of as much as 5%. The NHS was delivering efficiency savings of around 1% a year before Covid-19 but now faces higher costs as a result of the pandemic and inflation (above). Efficiency crunches are historically bad news for NHS IT, because trusts reduce investment and spending on “back office” functions.

NHS England launches Covid-19 booster campaign as Whitty warns of rising cases

NHS England has announced that bookings are open for spring Covid-19 boosters. The vaccinations are available to people aged 75 and over and those who are immunosuppressed. England’s chief medical officer, Professor Chris Whitty, warned this week that the NHS is under “significant pressure” as the result of a rise in Covid-19 cases (The Guardian). Speaking at the Local Government Association’s annual conference, he said hospitalisations could rise until April and people hoping for an “end point” to the pandemic should stop expecting one, as new variants are likely. Whitty said other areas of public health had also “gone backwards” over the past two-years.

NHS Tayside signs contract with Alcidion for Miya Observations

NHS Tayside has signed a five-year contract with Alcidion to deploy its electronic observations and early warning system, Miya Observations (previously known as Patientrack). The health board will deploy the system across 975 beds so staff can spot early signs of deterioration and act on them. Alcidion UK commercial director Tom Scott told the Health Tech Newspaper that the health board was the third in Scotland to deploy Miya Observations. The HTN spoke to Alcidion about its products and plans earlier this year. Two trusts are using its modern, modular electronic patient record, Miya Precision.

Alcidion was just one of the health tech companies at Digital Health Rewired last week, and there’s another chance to read our write-up of the key themes and keynotes from the event at the foot of the newsletter.

Company news: for X-on, Healthcare Gateway, and Induction Healthcare

UK cloud telephony specialist X-on has been acquired by business to business communications provider Southern Communications Group, Health Tech World has reported. The move will support X-on’s growth and development plans, building on the success of its award-winning Surgery Connect product for GP practices. Healthcare Gateway has announced that NHS Dumfries and Galloway has become the first organisation in Scotland to roll-out its Medical Interoperability Gateway. The move will give secondary care clinicians access to GP information through their Orion Health portal, digitalhealth.net has reported. And Induction Healthcare has announced that it has renewed its contracts with the Scottish Government for its Attend Anywhere video consultation product, investor site Proactive has reported.

Health IT news: about a digital apps course and what good looks like for nursing

Healthcare professionals can tap into a free online course developed by ORCHA with input from NHS clinicians and universities, Health Tech World has reported. The Digital Health Academy has launched with foundation modules that explain how apps work and how they can be deployed in the NHS. Specialist modules will follow on issues such as mental health and winter pressures. Meanwhile, the NHS England transformation directorate has published a ‘what good looks like’ for nurse leaders, the Health Tech Newspaper has reported. It outlines seven success measures for digital transformation in nursing.

Trusts to HIMSS5 by December 2023: will they make it this time?

Analysis

Health and social care secretary Sajid Javid has announced a new target to complete the digitisation of the acute sector. The Highland Marketing advisory board discussed the approach being developed by NHS England’s transformation directorate, and the challenges to making it work.

Seven hundred and 30 days later: #Rewired22

Conference Write-up

Digital Health Rewired was one of the last health and tech shows to go ahead before the UK locked down in the face of the Covid-19 pandemic. Two years later, #Rewired22 was back at the Business Design Centre, London, with a new commitment to a digital future. Jon Salmon reports.