Weekly Australian Health IT Links – 04 January, 2011.

Here are a few I found since the last post.


Note: Each link is followed by a title and a paragraph or two. For the full article click on the link above title of the article. Note also that full access to some links may require site registration or subscription payment.

General Comment:

Well I am not sure you missed much while you were away. Except for all the discussion on the overall directions for e-Health into the future - 30+ comments so far.

All are well worth a careful read, as are the follow-up posts and threads.

All the best to all for 2011!

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http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/myhospitals-mychoice/

MyHospitals, MyChoice?

by

Tory Shepherd

Governments treat their employers (us) with such contempt.

They genuinely think we can’t handle the truth, that they need to control the information flow so our little heads don’t explode, or our little worlds implode.

No - not the Wikileaks saga. The MyHospitals debacle.

The Federal Government site is but a shell, a skeletal frame of information that will neither help consumers make decisions nor spark underperformers into action - let alone highlight where they’re underfunding.

What people want to know when going to hospital (assuming they’re in a fit state to wonder) is how long it will take to be seen, how good the care is, and what the risks are.

The current website tells them none of that. Sure, it’s good to be able to compare elective and emergency waiting times to a national average; that is, it’s good for us media types to see who’s falling behind.

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http://nehta.gov.au/e-communications-in-practice/emedication-management

e-Medication Management

Through e-Medication Management prescriptions may be securely transmitted direct from the GP's desktop to the dispensing pharmacy. Medication information is then securely available in a wide range of healthcare settings from hospitals to community health centres and pharmacies. This will result in an improved use of medicines and a reduction of the number of adverse medication events.

New Documents Published in the last week or so. See NEHTA site.

Also IHE has published new material in the same are in the last few days.

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http://www.itnews.com.au/News/242288,tender-released-for-electronic-health-record-system.aspx

Tender released for electronic health record system

Government seeks advice on benefits, trends.

The Australian Government has released a tender for consulting work prior to the roll-out of a personally-controlled electronic health record (PCEHR) system.

Issued as part of the Government's $466.7 million eHealth investment, the Request for Tender for the PCEHR system (RFT 217/1011) was welcomed by the Minister for Health and Ageing, Nicola Roxon.

"The successful tenderer will put in place the analytical and evaluation framework that will underpin the development of e-health records," Roxon said.

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http://www.computerworld.com.au/article/372068/sa_health_prescribes_cancer_information_system/?eid=-6787&uid=25465

SA Health prescribes cancer information system

The system is to replace multiple systems in a bid to save patients

In an effort to improve patient safety, South Australia Health is looking to purchase a cancer information system (CIS) to be used in 13 hospitals.

Department documents state that cancer management within SA hospitals is performed through numerous disparate systems ranging from local patient admission systems to manual paper based record keeping.

“Drugs are ordered and formulated manually and the complex process of following standard treatment protocols is presenting a tangible risk to patient safety," the documents read. "A CIS has been proven with other hospitals to increase patient safety and improve operating efficiency."

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http://www.theaustralian.com.au/australian-it/government/ibm-health-ink-109m-ict-outsourcing-deal/story-fn4htb9o-1225975551096

IBM, Health ink $109m ICT outsourcing deal

  • UPDATED Fran Foo
  • From: Australian IT
  • December 23, 2010 4:45PM

THE federal Health Department has extended its technology services agreement with IBM to the tune of $109 million.

The value includes a modification to the last 12 months of the existing contract.

The contract renewal is further proof that Health and IBM are joined at the hip -- no other IT company was invited to tender for the business, a procurement process dubbed direct sourcing.

Health was especially concerned new vendor agreements could have an adverse impact on the Gillard government's health reforms.

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http://www.smh.com.au/national/timing-change-will-fix-health-problem-20101220-1935r.html

Timing change will 'fix' health problem

Julie Robotham HEALTH EDITOR

December 21, 2010

EMERGENCY doctors will clock the time between patients arriving in an ambulance and the hospital taking over their care, in a move expected to put a more favourable gloss on the politically sensitive measure before the state election.

The so-called off-stretcher time, which varies greatly between hospitals, reflects how crowded emergency departments are because paramedic crews must stay with patients until they are triaged or treatment is begun.

Under a new system beginning early next year, hospital staff will record the time the patient is transferred to a treatment bay. This will replace the current system, which records the time the ambulance crew report they are ready to respond to another call, and means average off-stretcher time will be shorter.

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http://www.e-health-insider.com/news/6521/isoft_makes_move_on_life_sciences

ISoft makes move on life sciences

21 Dec 2010

ISoft has signed a marketing agreement with US company, CliniWorks, to market its AccelFind software to organisation and hospitals across the world.

The companies say the software enables users to extract and de-identify medical knowledge from any type of data, including free text notes, discharge summaries or structured data such as those stored in electronic records or lab systems.

The agreement will see iSoft provide AccelFind as part of its Life Sciences solution, under the ‘Powered by CliniWorks’ banner.

ISoft’s director for life sciences, Dr Joerg Kraenzlein, said: “This is a tremendous opportunity to accelerate clinical research in a so far unprecedented way.

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http://www.e-health-insider.com/news/6530/isoft7_reach_%C2%A325m_agreement

ISoft7 reach £25m agreement

23 Dec 2010

The seven “out of cluster” trusts in London and the South of England that signed a deal with CSC and iSoft to keep their patient administration systems have reached an agreement to continue with their contracts.

Letters of intent from the trusts - known as the iSoft7 - have been received by both CSC and iSoft. They confirm the trusts’ plans to continue running iSoft’s iPM out of CSC’s datacentre until 2016.

The trusts that have iCM will also have their licences and maintenance extended to a similar timescale.

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http://www.e-health-insider.com/news/6524/morecambe:_lorenzo_starting_to_stabilise

Morecambe: Lorenzo starting to stabilise

22 Dec 2010

The director of service and commercial development at University Hospitals of Morecambe Bay NHS Foundation Trust has said Lorenzo is “starting to stabilise” seven months after go-live.

Patrick McGahon told E-Health Insider in a statement that more than 180 fixes to key functionality have taken place over the past six weeks and that fixes would continue until spring 2011.

“Staff who use Lorenzo have seen improvements in general usability across the various areas. The system is now starting to stabilise and improvements are continuing to be seen.”

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http://www.theage.com.au/technology/technology-news/price-shock-looms-for-some-on-nbn-20101220-1937l.html

Price shock looms for some on NBN

Clancy Yeates

December 21, 2010

SOME households could be forced to pay more for a basic internet service when they are compulsorily switched over to the $36 billion national broadband network, according to the business plan released yesterday by NBN Co.

The long-awaited plan predicted that households will have to pay between $53 and $58 a month for the most basic entry-level offering - compared with today's ''naked ADSL'' plans that start at about $30.

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http://www.heraldsun.com.au/ipad-application/state-government-looks-to-scrap-troubled-myki-smartcard/story-fn6bfkm6-1225976850649

State Government looks to scrap troubled myki smartcard

  • Ashley Gardiner
  • From: Herald Sun
  • December 28, 2010 12:00AM

THE State Government has frozen the expansion of myki as it considers whether to scrap the troubled smartcard.

The Herald Sun can reveal the new Government has put the brakes on the planned introduction of myki to V/Line regional services.

It has also ordered the abandonment of plans to switch off the existing Metcard by Easter.

A system for commuters to top up their accounts through bus drivers has also been halted.

The Government has commissioned a major accounting firm to conduct a broad audit of the troubled $1.35 billion smartcard.

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http://www.computerworld.com.au/article/371841/government_releases_nbn_business_plan/?eid=-6787&uid=25465

Government releases NBN business plan

A basic feed from the NBN will cost telecommunications wholesalers $24 a month, the federal government has revealed.

  • AAP (AAP)
  • 20 December, 2010 13:12

A basic feed from the National Broadband Network (NBN) will cost telecommunications wholesalers $24 a month, the federal government has revealed.

Communications Minister Stephen Conroy released the long-awaited NBN business plan in Canberra today.

The basic plan will offer download speeds of 12 megabits per second and upload speeds of one megabit per second.

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http://www.computerworld.com.au/article/371838/nbn_viable_says_gillard/?eid=-6787&uid=25465

NBN is viable, says Gillard

Prime Minister Julia Gillard says the business plan for the NBN proves that it will be both viable and affordable.

  • AAP (AAP)
  • 20 December, 2010 12:57

Prime Minister Julia Gillard says the business plan for the national broadband network (NBN) proves that it will be both viable and affordable.

The federal government released the long-awaited business plan today, which has been with Communications Minister Stephen Conroy since early November.

Gillard said the plan confirms the NBN will be delivered at a smaller cost than originally thought.

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http://www.smh.com.au/business/broadband-network-business-plan-to-be-released-in-full-20101219-191yk.html

Broadband network business plan to be released in full

Lucy Battersby

December 20, 2010

THE government is expected to release the full business plan for the $36 billion national broadband network today.

The plan will outline assumptions about the network's viability, how many people are expected to use it, and how profitable it will be.

A cut-down 35-page version of the plan was released last month to help secure votes from independent senators for new telecommunications legislation, but it failed to impress both investors and the federal opposition.

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http://www.theage.com.au/world/youve-seen-the-movie-now-try-the-gadget-20110101-19cle.html

You've seen the movie, now try the gadget

January 2, 2011

Times are changing and Hollywood sci-fi dreams are becoming a technological reality. Stephen Cauchi finds out which big screen fantasies are now fact.

BLADE Runner, a film set in 2019, features flying cars zipping over a dystopian Los Angeles. Sometime between now and 2029, according to the Terminator films, artificially intelligent robots will battle humans for world supremacy. And in 2054, according to Stephen Spielberg's hit Minority Report, police will be able to predict crimes before they happen.

These scenarios are unlikely to be realised, at least in the timeframe suggested by the films. But a review of this year's technological achievements show that at least some gadgets that were once the sole preserve of a sci-fi writer's imagination are becoming reality.

Great fun!

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Enjoy!

David.

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