PANDO HEALTH HAS BEEN ADDED TO THE NHS LIBRARY

Clinical messaging app Pando Health has been added to the NHS Library after official approval by NHS Digital. The app, which was launched in 2018, was founded by NHS staff and designed with NHS staff in mind. The platform allows staff to communicate safely with each other between wards and care teams to share advice, test results and other information, and is NHS England compliant. It has seen a 700% increase in engagement since COVID-19 struck.

“Pando has placed data protection and security at the heart of everything we do since day one. We are proud to deliver a tool that is not only safe to use but equips our 45,000 users with features that have been specifically designed for health and social care settings,” says co-founder, Dr. Barney Gilbert. “We are beyond delighted to join the NHS App Library. Pando is now the most widely used clinical messaging system in the NHS and we feel privileged to be able to support our healthcare workers at this critical time for our health service.”

LOGPOINT SIEM CHOSEN AS MANCHESTER MENTAL HEALTH SECURITY PROVIDER

Greater Manchester Mental Health NHS Foundation Trust (GMMH), UK, have selected LogPoint SIEM to ensure their cybersecurity and compliance across its 130 mental health and addiction treatment locations. The system will monitor the IT infrastructure, providing accurate cyberthreat detection without disrupting digital resources.

Kevin Orritt, ICT security manager at GMMH, said: “The LogPoint SIEM solution easily integrates with all of our technology stack to address our specific use cases, and it gives us the visibility we need across our enterprise.”

Russel Poole, regional director at LogPoint, added: “We are honoured that GMMH has chosen the LogPoint SIEM solution. LogPoint helps to detect evolving cybersecurity threats, provides centralised analytics across the entire IT infrastructure, and also supports compliance which is a crucial element in modern healthcare.”

NHS TRUST BANS ZOOM AS TELEHEALTH PLATFORM AMID SECURITY CONCERNS

Following security concerns, the Central London Community Healthcare (CLCH) NHS trust has banned the use of Zoom to conduct remote video-consultations with patients. This move has come in the wake of reported ‘zoombombing’ on the platform, where hackers hijack video-conferences with illicit images.

The pandemic has seen exponential usage in a variety of secure telehealth platforms, including GDPR-compliant Icelandic platform Kara Connect, which saw a 3,770% surge in subscriptions across Europe in February and March. A number of NHS trusts are using Microsoft Teams, who have offered their service free to healthcare workers during the pandemic.

UK GOVERNMENT PLEDGES £1BN TO SUPPORT STARTUPS DURING COVID-19

The UK Government have pledged to protect startups during the COVID-19 outbreak with a £1.25 billion support package. £750 million will be allocated as ‘targeted support’ for SMEs focused on R&D, which will particularly benefit innovation in health tech.

Chancellor Rishi Sunak said: "Our startups and businesses driving research and development are one of our great economic strengths, and will help power our growth out of the coronavirus crisis. This new, world-leading fund will mean they can access the capital they need at this difficult time, ensuring dynamic, fast-growing firms across all sectors will be able to continue to create new ideas and spread prosperity.”

CEO of Careology, Paul Landau added: ”Healthcare is seeing a paradigm shift in the adoption of technology due to coronavirus. We expect this will accelerate and become normalised post pandemic, enabling healthcare to be delivered in a safe, scalable and efficient way, whilst improving the patient experience. This change is only achievable with the innovation underpinned by technology.”

FRENCH INSURANCE PROVIDER RAISES €50M IN SERIES C FUNDING BID

French digital health insurance provider Alan has succeeded in raising €50 million in a recent Series C investment round, bringing total investment up to €125 million. The funding, led by Singapore-based investment company Temasek, will help the company launch additional healthcare services and expand internationally. Alan provides easy digital access to professional healthcare and, since the pandemic, has offered a comprehensive informational and wellbeing platform to its users.

Jean-Charles Samuelian, CEO of Alan, said: “Since its creation, Alan has been driven by its mission to make the healthcare system frictionless, fair and friendly for everyone. […] The global COVID-19 outbreak has reinforced people’s aspiration for more control over their health, and for a better healthcare system at every level.

“Once the world begins to emerge from the COVID-19 health crisis, we believe that patients’ expectations and demands on the healthcare system will lead to a much faster transition to digital solutions. This is not just about convenience, but about delivering better care.”

TEAMVIEWER OFFERING AR APP FREE TO HEALTHCARE ORGANISATIONS

German remote connectivity platform TeamViewer are offering healthcare providers worldwide their Pilot Augment Reality (AR) mobile support app free of charge until 31 July 2020. The app, which is downloadable to smartphones and tablets through the Apple App and Google Play stores, uses AR to enable health-workers to share technical and medical support, provide basic training and collaborate with one another remotely. The secure platform also facilitates file sharing and live video streaming.

Oliver Steil, CEO at TeamViewer, said: “Healthcare workers are asking for remote solutions when they can’t physically be in multiple places, or if it’s too dangerous to travel to multiple facilities. Our front-line healthcare workers are spread thin right now and at TeamViewer, we want to do everything we can to help those helping us the most during the crisis.”