Features published each month
Contents
May 2008
Home is where the best heart care is
Joshua Rowe, of telemedicine specialist Broomwell Healthwatch,
explains how a cardiac telemedicine service can improve patient care
whilst cutting the cost of congestive heart failure (CHF). May 2008.
read more ...
April 2008
The Doctor's viewpoint: Intelligent
medical IT
Dr Sebastian Zeki gives a personal insight into life on the front line
for a user of hospital IT systems. This month he gives his five
basic principles for the design of successful IT systems.
April 2008.
read more ...
Using
GIS to get foundation trust membership right from the start
Paul Smith of Active Solutions Europe discusses the
applications of geographic and demographic information in the pre-
and post- authorisation phases of foundation trusts. April 2008.
read more ...
18 weeks… and counting
As the 18-week referral-to-treatment deadline for the NHS gets
closer , David Beeson of Ardentia discusses the issues that NHS
trusts face and how they can best meet reporting requirements to
ensure compliance and guarantee the best possible access to care.
April 2008. read more ...
West London Mental Health Trust
optimises IT help desk support
To support 2,500 members of staff across 30 sites, help desk
optimisation was needed to improve service delivery. IT business
management (ITBM) software has enabled the trust to customise
processes around the requirements of staff and monitor and analyse
work performed by the support team, reducing human error while
increasing the quality of service. read
more ...
Nottingham City Council delivers community-level geographical
information
Nottingham City Council is using geographic information systems
to present strategic partner data online in a localised, interactive
and eye-catching graphical format, supporting evidence-based
decision making and reporting at the community level. April 2008.
read more ...
Elearning: the solution to the NHS’s training shortfall?
Ian ockerill of Adobe Systems reviews the role that
modern elearning programs
could play in providing effective and efficient learning tools for
time-pressed NHS staff. April 2008. read
more ...
Automated referrals reduce waiting
times for North Staffordshire orthopaedic service
Paper-based methods were leading to long delays in getting patients
referred to musculoskeletal services and inefficiencies in managing
records. The development of an electronic referral and discharge
system for its SMASHERS project reduced referral time to hours, and
streamlined document management. April 2008.
read more ...
March 2008
The National Library for Health — an architecture for knowledge
discovery to delivery
Ian McKinnell Head of Development at the National Library for Health
summarises the achievements of the Library in its aim to build a
modern, networked library service that links users to both digital
and physical library services, putting knowledge to work to
transform patient care and public health.
March 2008. read more...
Technology and training go hand-in-hand
Chris Davies for Steljes Ltd, explores the vital role technology
plays in training a new generation of healthcare professionals.
March 2008. read more...
A finger on the pulse
of security
Jim Fulton of DigitalPersona discusses the advantages of
biometric security for authorising logon to IT systems. March 2008.
read more ...
The Doctor's viewpoint:
What the bleep!
Dr Sebastian Zeki gives a personal insight into life on the front
line for a user of hospital ICT systems. This month he looks at the
inefficient but ubiquitous hospital bleeper. March 2008.
read more ...
First steps towards fully integrated working in the London
Borough of Newham
Multi-agency information sharing and data matching issues have
recently raised serious concerns throughout the public sector.
Acknowledging the importance of integrated working in improving
outcomes for children and young people, the London Borough of Newham
sought a solution to address the inefficiencies of pre-existing
disparate systems. March 2008. read more
...
February 2008
Creative server virtualisation gives Leeds trust business
continuity
Leeds Partnerships NHS Foundation Trust has consolidated a large
number of separate
servers into a virtualised environment, moved to a centralised SAN
structure for storage and improved a remote disaster-recovery site,
re-using some of the original servers. The Trust now enjoys an IT structure that supports future
growth and change requirements as well as providing critical business
continuity.
February 2008. read more ... Technology-assisted supported living for people with autism in
Waltham Forest
The Waltham Forest supported living scheme provides self-contained flats with
staff on-call 24-hours a day and a combination of safety-design
features, assistive technology and telecare technology to enable
people affected by autism to live independently and enjoy a more
active role in the community. February 2008.
read more ...
Opinion: Information-sharing lessons from the
Victoria Climbié case
Andrew Meiner of Cambio Healthcare
Systems discusses the importance of interoperability and information
sharing in providing complete care across the healthcare
landscape.
February 2008. read more ...
Moving care closer to home
Healthcare policy in the UK is changing from providing care in acute
hospitals to providing it closer to home. Implementing this policy
requires changes in the way care is commissioned. The NHS Institute
for Innovation and Improvement has developed a new range of products
to help healthcare commissioners plan and deliver the changes
required. February 2008. read more ...
Touchscreen self check-in system keeps GP queues moving
One way of saving time at check-in is to let patients check
themselves in using a touchscreen linked to the GP practice software
that presents a series of questions to check identity and gives a
colour code that alerts the patient when the doctor is ready.
February 2008. read more ...
Managing disease outbreaks with information technology
Disease outbreaks can have significant effects not just on the
people infected, but on business and the social and technological
infrastructure. Dr Dennis McShane of Clinical Solutions
describes how information technology can help both government and
the public manage disease outbreaks. read
more ...
Listening to the sound of success can overcome scepticism of
screening programmes
Screening programmes allow early identification of
health problems and enable resources to be targeted more
appropriately. The NHS Newborn Hearing Screening Programme is one of
the most successful screening programmes in the NHS, and the most
advanced of its type in the world. David Meaden of Northgate
Public Services describes the crucial role of the information system
that underpins the Programme. read more
... Designing a digital home for older people
Technology can have a big impact on the health and well-being of
older people. Very few
electronic products for use in the home, however, are designed for
ease of use by older people eg TVs, phones, mobile phones, radios. With the rapidly
aging population in
all developed countries it even makes economic sense for companies
to design specifically for this market. Chris Millington
of Doro UK, outlines the key factors that product designers should consider.
read more ...
Enabling self-directed adult care
The Putting People First framework for adult care announced in
December 2007 will lead to large changes in the provision of care in
England. Denise Harrison, Director at Liquidlogic outlines
the challenges facing all parties involved in the care process and
the role of technology as an enabler for delivering care.
read more ...
The dangers of privileged password management — who’s the next
Société Générale?
Calum Macleod, European Director of Cyber-Ark explains how
weaknesses in password security can lead to huge financial losses
and the downfall of a large organisation. A warning that could be
applied to any public or private sector organisation.
read more ...
Design of a fully client-based electronic attendance
registration system in a UK district hospital
Dr Michael Ogundele, Dr Baljinder Singh and Dr Stella Imong of Torbay Hospital have developed an
easy-to-use and effective web-based system which allows doctors in
training and other healthcare professionals to record their
attendance at various academic sessions organised by their hospital.
read more ...
January 2008
Nottingham University Hospitals can the spam
Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust upgraded its email
security solution and managed to block over 95% of spam, remove
malicious content and reduce the IT staff workload by up to 50 hours
a week. read more ...
Opinion: Ban USB memory sticks in
the NHS
Phil Colledge of 123 Consultants says the security risks of
memory sticks are too great to allow their use.
read more ...
Opinion: Public data loss
Dr Barry Barber, one of the world's leading patient
confidentiality experts (now retired) comments on the recent series
of disclosures by government organisations of losses of data.
read more ...
The Doctor's viewpoint: PACS vobiscum
Dr Sebastian Zeki gives a personal insight into life on the front line
for a user of hospital IT systems. This month he looks at the
revolution caused by the introduction of digital radiology systems.
read more ...
ID cards and access control: addressing the problem of digital
identities in the NHS
A typical hospital will have many measures for controlling
security, from physical access to car parks, buildings or rooms, to
login to numerous IT systems and applications. Paul Edmondson
of Enline plc explains how an integrated system can improve
security, reduce the management overhead and simplify the practical
aspects of security for staff.
  The
EPR Arms: Targets, targets, targets
Do targets really help provide a better service, or do they just
direct resources into making sure certain numbers stay within
limits? Join Sean Brennan and the regulars at the EPR Arms
for a discussion of the meaning of life under targets.
enter the pub ....
Making Choose and Book work for secondary care
Professor Angus Wallace, chair of the National Specialty
Reference Group (NSRG), outlines the work he and his team in NSRG
have conducted to improve a crucial element of Choose and Book and
what it holds in store for consultants.
read more ...
Making healthcare organisations
secure from hack attacks
Graham Cluley of Sophos outlines the numerous current security risks
threatening networks and the safety measures to employ to keep them
safe. read more ...
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