Healthcare Innovation

Trickle-Up Innovation: Transforming Healthcare from the Ground Up

Trickle-up innovation in healthcare focuses on designing solutions for the most vulnerable, leading to widespread benefits. This approach contrasts with the traditional top-down model, which often leaves many underserved. By addressing the needs of low-access populations, healthcare designers are forced to innovate creatively, resulting in simpler, more effective solutions.

Examples of trickle-up innovation include telemedicine platforms for rural areas, medical ride-sharing programs, and community health initiatives like the Black Barbershop Health Outreach Program. These innovations not only improve access but also reimagine healthcare delivery, integrating it into everyday community spaces. This paradigm shift emphasises that the future of healthcare lies in addressing fundamental needs with creative, community-based solutions.

Healthcare Technology

AI's Role in Healthcare Payer Modernisation: Benefits and Limitations

AI offers significant benefits for healthcare payers, particularly in modernising IT infrastructure and optimising operations. Generative AI copilots can streamline data migration, enhance care management, and detect fraud. However, AI is not a cure-all and should not be used for ethical decisions or rare condition management. Misuse or poor implementation can lead to failures and erode trust.

Payers must carefully implement AI, ensuring human oversight and continuous monitoring. AI tools require thoughtful use and should not be adopted merely because they are trendy. The potential for AI to transform healthcare is substantial, but it demands a strategic and cautious approach to avoid costly mistakes and maintain trust in sensitive health matters.

National Awards

Local NHS Recruitment Efforts Recognised in National Awards

Local NHS Bodies Shortlisted for National Awards for Healthcare Support Worker Recruitment Programme

Efforts to recruit healthcare support workers at Bedford, Luton and Dunstable, and Milton Keynes Hospitals have been recognised as finalists in the Nursing Times Workforce Awards. The project has placed 94 healthcare support workers into new roles and is nominated in two categories:

1. Best Use of Workplace Technology for a digital marketing recruitment campaign.

2. Workforce Team of the Year for the Workforce Development Academy's cross-sector initiatives.

Felicity Cox, CEO of Bedfordshire, Luton and Milton Keynes Integrated Care Board, emphasised the importance of diversifying the NHS workforce to address increasing demand and waiting lists. The awards ceremony will take place in London on November 28.

Healthcare Technology

Northwestern Adopts Qventus AI to Improve Healthcare Efficiency and Reduce Burnout

Northwestern Medicine is utilising Qventus' new AI assistant to alleviate administrative burdens on healthcare staff. The AI assistant, developed in collaboration with health systems like Ardent Health and Allina Health, integrates with EHRs to automate tasks such as operating room scheduling and pre-operative planning. This aims to reduce staff burnout and improve productivity.

Dr. Saadia Sherwani, a senior vice president at Northwestern, highlighted the significant time clinicians spend on administrative tasks, which impacts their efficiency and wellness. By leveraging machine learning and behavioural science, the AI assistant predicts operational bottlenecks and automates processes, potentially reducing same-day surgery cancellations by 25-40% and boosting productivity.

Healthcare Technology

Libraries to Assist Patients with NHS App Access

NHS England is partnering with libraries to help patients access online health services via the NHS App. Launching in October, the initiative will provide librarians with toolkits and support to assist users. The service has already started in select libraries, such as in Buckinghamshire, Oxfordshire, and Berkshire West ICB, where digital cafes are held for app assistance.

Pensioners are the most active users of the NHS App, with 5 million registered, nearly half using it from March to May 2024. John Quinn, NHS England's CIO, emphasised the role of public libraries in reaching those facing barriers to online health information. Louise Goswami highlighted the success of health literacy pilots, noting the positive reception of library staff assistance.

Mental Health and Wellbeing

Prioritising NHS Staff Mental Health and Wellbeing

NHS staff face severe mental health challenges due to high job vacancies, increased service demand, and stretched resources post-pandemic. Almost a third feel burnt out, and suicide rates are rising, with one doctor and one nurse taking their own lives every few weeks.

Doctors in Distress, a mental health charity, supports NHS workers by reducing stigma, promoting wellbeing, and offering early intervention programs. They advocate for mental health training in medical education and reflective practice to foster a compassionate culture.

The charity has supported over 3,000 professionals since 2020 and calls for investment and policy changes to prioritise staff wellbeing. On September 17, they will hold the first UK annual memorial day for healthcare workers lost to suicide.