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Healthcare Needs New Skills To Build On Its COVID Inspired Digital Transformation
One of the more fascinating aspects of the coronavirus pandemic has been the speed of change in healthcare providers, such as the UK's National Health Service (NHS). For decades, the NHS has suffered under the maxim of having more pilots than British Airways, with few digital projects graduating beyond pilot stage. Yet, in the space of a month, telehealth has grown to the point that 90% of primary care appointments were being delivered virtually, with apps being developed to provide remote monitoring of people as they monitor and manage their symptoms of the virus. It's shown what can be possible when the 'burning platform' is sufficiently hot, but the digital skills of NHS staff remains an enduring challenge, not least in terms of their data literacy. The value of data in improving healthcare was perhaps best underlined by a report published a few years ago by the Richmond Group of medical charities. “Healthcare data is one of the NHS’s most precious resources. It allows individuals to be empowered in their own care, medical professionals to improve and tailor individual treatments and the system as a whole to learn and increase its understanding of what causes disease, how it can be prevented and how it should best be treated,” the report says. The parlous state of medical data has been well documented, however, whether in terms of the poor state of electronic medical records, the siloed nature of health-related data, and the poor integration of user-generated health data. Data literacy Arguably a more pressing concern, however, is the lack of fundamental data literacy among the healthcare workforce. The Data Literacy Index, published in 2018, rated healthcare as the worst performing sector in terms of data literacy of staff. “Data has the ability to unlock massive potential in the NHS, from enabling more effective population health in the community, ensuring a consistent high-standard of patient care, as well as in managing critical medical resources amid rising demand," says Jordan Morrow, Global Head of Data Literacy at Qlik. “While data is most powerful when it’s used across the organisation – from management and administration through to frontline workers – few organisations are actively investing in their employees’ ability to confidently use data." This dire conclusion was shared by a second report, from The GovLab, which bemoaned the way data literacy was holding back projects such as AI and preventative medicine. "The collection and analysis of data, when done responsibly and in a trusted manner, has the potential to improve treatment and drive towards value, both social and economic, in healthcare," the report says. "However, the goal of using data to improve the NHS and social care is hampered by a “talent gap” – a lack of personnel with data analytical skills – that stands in the way of uncovering the rich insights expected to reside in the NHS’ own data." A new report from EIT Health and McKinsey therefore offers a timely opportunity to gauge progress. The report specifically looks at how the human capital available to healthcare providers may be supporting, or undermining, progress with AI in the sector. It suggests that for the technology to achieve its full potential, not only will staff require strong data and analytics skills, but even basic digital skills will become a prerequisite. Alas, these are skills that are typically not part of the curriculum in medical training, which is leaving a generation of healthcare workers ill equipped to deal with the requirements of the modern age. "Practitioners need not only to be able to use AI solutions, but assess when they are appropriate for patients and those on the front line need to explain them to those patients," the report says. "This requires a mixture of digital literacy and critical thinking skills rather than specific qualifications in statistics – and these skills are needed across all healthcare staff." New roles As well as boosting the digital skills of traditional clinical staff, the report also highlights the likely growth in new roles across the healthcare sector, including data scientists, AI engineers and data governance experts. What the report is less clear on is how the sector will attract such personnel given the simultaneous demand for such roles across the economy, and the current shortage of experienced workers in these areas. Healthcare is not renowned for its high pay and may struggle to attract talent in these areas in sufficient volume and quality when they're fighting against organizations in finance, technology, and automotive sectors, who traditionally offer much higher packages to workers. Of course, the upskilling of healthcare workers does not merely have benefits in terms of the end use of AI-based technologies, but also raises the possibility of clinical staff being more heavily involved in the creation of the technologies in the first place. The paper revealed that among clinical staff with AI skills, over half had been involved in either the development or the deployment of an AI solution. This is important, as the paper highlights how many AI startups overlook the importance of involving healthcare professionals in the early stages of their development, which hampers adoption when changes are then required at a more advanced stage in order to cope with the realities of the operating environment. "While medical practitioners seem universally keen to be involved at all stages of developing and implementing solutions – indeed, consider it an imperative – the startup community appears less convinced," the report says. "Only 14 percent of survey respondents from AI startups felt that the input of healthcare professionals was critical in the design phase, rising to 25 percent for the testing phase." Developing the skills Last year, the NHS conducted the Topol Review, which was led by digital health pioneer Eric Topol, into the skills required for the future. The report proposes three core principles by which Topol believes the NHS’s workforce strategy should be guided in the future: Patient empowerment – with new tools enabling patients to take a more active involvement in their own care. Driven by evidence – with any introduction of new technology driven by evidence rather than hype or the latest trends so that stakeholders can trust it. Saving time – healthcare is a notoriously time-pressed environment, and so the adoption of technology should strive to return time to professionals to deliver better care. The need to change is underpinned by the fact that despite the workforce growing to its largest ever, the NHS still struggles to keep up with the demands placed on it by the growing and ageing UK population. The education of this workforce will be crucial if any kind of successful digital transformation is to be seen. “The education and training of the existing workforce, along with the preparation of an appropriate pipeline of talented future staff, will be key to the success of any programme of change designed to empower staff to take advantage of the advances in technology to improve service delivery,” Topol says. Whilst there have been some projects, such as the NHS Digital Academy, already created, these programs target a tiny proportion of the overall workforce. One of the core challenges identified in the report is the time required to train. Workers at all levels report increasing levels of stress as they struggle to cope with the growing expectations of both the public and their managers. Factoring in the requisite time to both learn new skills, and to integrate their new skills into current practice in a heavily target-driven culture is a hurdle that cannot be over-estimated. Data-driven healthcare Heather Gittings, Global Industry Director, Public Sector & Healthcare at Qlik argues that a first step is to try and engage more staff in understanding the value of data, and how it can benefit them in their work. She suggests that for many frontline workers today, the perception of data is largely a negative one. "For example, clinicians may receive data on wait time within the Emergency Department to show whether they are on target or whether they will face penalties for those patients that weren’t processed within four hours," she explains. "This analysis is therefore perceived negatively and, in turn, many frontline workers are unenthusiastic about using data that may become “another stick to beat them with”." As we've seen with the use of technology during the COVID outbreak, Gittings also believes its crucial for data to be fully embedded into the workers' existing workflow. During the pandemic, this has been supported due to the fundamental change the virus has brought to the workflow of many healthcare professionals, and it will be important to take lessons from this in the introduction of technologies in the post-pandemic healthcare environment. "This was certainly true for the University Hospitals of Morecambe Bay NHS Foundation Trust, which introduced an Analytical Command Centre, a series of large analytics dashboards based at the Royal Lancaster Infirmary site that provides frontline care workers with instant access to key information, such as the status of ambulances, surges in demand, which patients are due for discharge, as well as the current bed state across the Trust," Gittings explains. "Since its introduction, the numbers of patients triaged within 15 minutes of arrival has improved from around 65% to a position where the Trust consistently triages 95% of patients within 15 minutes of arrival at one of the Emergency Departments." There are likely to be a host of stories that emerge from healthcare during the pandemic, and while the majority of these will revolve around the true heroism of frontline staff going above and beyond the call of duty, there are also likely to be those involving the successful deployment of new technology. These can be a powerful catalyst in driving change across the institution, and help to involve people in the further design and deployment of technologies in healthcare. The pandemic has also made it crystal clear that data plays a crucial role in the decision making process in healthcare, not just in terms of understanding the number of people infected, but how their health is progressing while in isolation. This will hopefully help to drive an enduring culture of data-driven decision making across the sector. “Using data to drive decision making not only helps ensure that the insights provided are the most relevant and actionable for the frontline workers, but makes them feel part of the process," Gittings explains. "Indeed, our experience has shown that when clinicians remain part of the design process, constantly feeding into the analytics team with possible improvements or way to expand the application, they stay engaged longer and the adoption of data decision making increases because they have a stake in its success.” As the report from the Richmond Group illustrates, data has the potential to truly transform the way healthcare is delivered. It can't be done without staff across the sector improving their data literacy, however. The rapid transformation seen during the COVID pandemic illustrates the change that can be delivered, and provides an incredible base to build on in delivering the data-driven transformation of healthcare that has been long overdue.
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Check out how Exploristics can help get clinical trials back on track after disruption due to COVID-19
Unexpected disruption to clinical trials, such as that seen in the global COVID-19 pandemic, can have a devastating impact on patients and healthcare systems and cause numerous unforeseen challenges for developers of medicines, medical diagnostics and devices. At Exploristics, they…
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The GIANT Health Inbound Trade Mission goes virtual too!
What is our Inbound Trade Mission Programme? The GIANT Health Inbound Trade Mission will be held as planned and is virtual too. The Inbound Trade Mission delivers opportunities for foreign health-tech businesses to enter the UK market. We at GIANT Health still remain committed to finding new business opportunities for overseas companies outside of the U.K. We still want to encourage and support global healthcare technology and innovation. If you are interested and would still like to find out more please contact us, we would love to hear from you.
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Peezy Midstream is the only urine collection method that meets Public Health England’s UK Standards for Microbiology Investigation of Urine.
Peezy Midstream transforms essential urine screening for routine and prenatal medicine, delivering accuracy and right-first-time prescribing. See how and why in pictures, using our new infographic. Urine is one of the most important carriers of cancer biomarkers, bacteria, protein, glucose…
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UK secures early access to promising coronavirus vaccine candidates
The UK government has secured early access to 90 million doses of promising early Covid-19 vaccine candidates, with more in the pipeline as the country looks to build a portfolio of promising new vaccines to protect the UK from coronavirus. Efforts have also been successful in securing treatments containing Covid-19- neutralising antibodies to protect those who cannot receive vaccines, such as cancer and immunocompromised patients. The announcement of these partnerships, made by Business Secretary Alok Sharma, would provide the UK with the opportunity to access enough doses to vaccinate and protect priority groups identified, such as frontline health and social care workers and those at increased health risk, in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. The government has also launched the NHS Covid-19 vaccine research registry to aid efforts in getting access to a safe and effective vaccine. The new website will enable people in the UK to volunteer for future vaccine studies more easily, allowing members of the public to register their interest and be contacted to participate in clinical studies. In order to enable large-scale vaccine studies across the UK, the government is aiming to recruit 500,000 by October – a target considered essential in their strategy in quickly combatting coronavirus and securing an effective, viable vaccine. Clinical studies with hundreds of thousands of volunteers will help scientists and researchers better understand the effectiveness of each vaccine candidate and will considerably speed up efforts to discover a safe and workable vaccine. Business Secretary Sharma said: “The hunt to find a vaccine is a truly global endeavour and we are doing everything we can to ensure the British public get access to a safe and effective coronavirus vaccine as soon as possible. “This new partnership with some of the world’s foremost pharmaceutical and vaccine companies will ensure the UK has the best chance possible of securing a vaccine that protects those most at risk. “The public can also play their part in vaccine research through the new NHS vaccine research register. By signing up and participating in important clinical studies, together we can speed up the search for a vaccine and end the pandemic sooner.” Professor Chris Whitty, Chief Medical Officer and NIHR Head, added: “Thanks to Covid-19 patients’ willingness to take part in treatment studies, we’ve been able to identify treatments that work and ones that don’t, which has improved patient care world-wide. “Now that there are several promising vaccines on the horizon, we need to call again on the generosity of the public to help find out which potential vaccines are the most effective. “Using a new NHS website developed in partnership between the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) and NHS Digital, people across the UK can register their interest to be approached to join a vaccine study. Please go to the website and consider volunteering.”
Read more: UK secures early ...Next Tonight @ 8 webinar on Monday - Radio Society of Great Britain
Monday, 27 July 2020 You can find out more about all the webinars here.
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Explore the whitepaper on Engaging With Regulators on Novel Statistical Approaches to Clinical Development written by Scendea and Exploristics
CURRENT CHALLENGES IN DRUG DEVELOPMENT The Pharmaceutical Industry is undergoing significant change as it faces extreme pressure to deliver new treatments to market at a time of increased spending in R&D. Multiple economic pressures are being exer ted on…
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VInehealth ranking #5 in TechRound100, start-ups of 2020.
Rayna, a former NHS doctor, and Georgina, a data scientist, combined forces to create a pioneering app in cancer care. Vinehealth was designed to empower cancer patients to take control of their treatment. Through creating an app, this gave patients…
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Top UK surgeon launches revolutionary 3D printing program to improve heart surgery for children
Hampshire’s leading heart charity, Wessex Heartbeat, has funded a program that can transform the way heart surgery is performed in Southampton. The revolutionary project will allow surgeons to get an accurate 3D printed model of a patient’s heart before surgery, giving additional insights and improving peace of mind to patients and their families. The 3D printing program will support clinicians at the University Hospital Southampton, which has become the latest NHS Foundation Trust to use 3D printing in the hope that it will encourage less evasive, and more accurate, pre-operative planning for surgery on children with congenital heart disease (CHD). The pioneering 3D printing program will enable clinicians to create a model of the patient’s heart. Surgeons at the hospital can request a model by sending a CT scan or MRI scan to medical 3D printing firm, Axial3D. Once the patient data is received, algorithm and segmentation experts at Axial3D will create and ship a 3D printable model in less than 48 hours. The models produced will be an exact replica of the patient’s heart, and will offer an in-depth look at the organ, including any tiny imperfections that may have originally been missed. The use of this new and cutting-edge technology means that surgeons can meticulously plan any operations necessary and completely minimise the number of invasive operations and procedures that the child will undergo throughout his or her life. Once used, the 3D hearts can also offer training and practice opportunities to help develop more precise and efficient surgery techniques. Mr Nicola Viola, who is one of the UK’s top paediatric and adult congenital cardiac surgeons said: “3D printing is an incredible piece of technology which can change the way we approach congenital heart disease treatment in children. “Working with Axial3D’s 3D printing team allows us to focus on the patient’s heart in the confidence that they are printing exactly what we need. Even more importantly, the ability to customise each model before printing allows us to personalise treatment further, ensuring that we know exactly what we are dealing with before reaching the operating theatre.” Daniel Crawford, Founder and CSO at Axial3D, said “We are delighted that through the support of Wessex Heartbeat, we can welcome University Hospital Southampton onboard as the latest hospital showing their desire to transform patient care. “Our mission is to disprove the myth of medical 3D printing being a lengthy and costly process by offering a nationally accessible medical Hub available to all NHS and private hospitals. The savings we make are passed directly onto the users ensuring all healthcare professionals can access the technology and skills necessary to improve surgical planning.” John Munro, CEO at Wessex Heartbeat, said “Cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death in the UK, and we recognise that having a child with this condition leads to devastation for the whole family. Being able to maximise efficiency and offer such respite to the families with the technology used is vital to not only the general wellbeing of the patient and their family but also to the recovery and living stage, after diagnosis. Wessex Heartbeat have committed to raise funds to continue to support this amazing project for at least the next 4 years”
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Establishing an adaptable infrastructure to cope with health crises
With the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the world has witnessed a number of healthtech innovations – from the sudden rise of telehealth platforms, to use of artificial intelligence (AI) in diagnosis. The NHS has faced an unprecedented challenge, and modern telecommunications have enabled NHSX – the UK Government unit driving forward the digital transformation of health and social care – which can be used to track COVID-19 in real-time and potentially limit its spread. The pandemic has shown that these innovations are not only essential to solving many of our global healthcare concerns, but there is an urgent need for an adaptable infrastructure to cope with such health crises. We must look to technology for a solution. Current technology in healthcare In healthcare today, AI is already used through the application of machine learning. This enables medical professionals to better understand certain health conditions. For example, through AI programmes, scientists can explore the huge volume of data that makes up the DNA in the blood of cancer patients. With this insight, they can detect specific mutations which will eventually be used to classify those most at risk or identify those that may perhaps require further consultation .Through pattern recognition, AI has the potential to enable patients to be screened with greater efficiency and scale, and assist doctors with overall disease management. As a result, they will eventually be able to improve or better coordinate healthcare plans for long-term treatment. Internet of things (IoT) is also allowing us to approach major health issues differently, mainly though forms of monitoring and supervision. Consumers are already seeing the adoption of smart watches and other wearables that can track our exercise output or heartrate – but doctors are seeing the potential application of these types of technologies within wider healthcare – perhaps they would be put to even better use in the remote monitoring of patients or improving medical systems of record. In the future, we may begin to see these sensors dispersed within our own bodies, tracking everything from oxygen, to glucose, even body temperature – or perhaps smart devices installed in our home with remote access for our GPs and other healthcare professionals. Tackling the COVID-19 pandemic When it comes to COVID-19, this is new territory and so it must be approached differently. AI can be used to identify high-risk groups and possibly diagnose potential patients. For example, studies show that those with chronic illnesses and other underlying health conditions, such as respiratory and cardiovascular disease or obesity, have a greater risk of complications from the virus. AI could potentially assist in the discovery of a new vaccine, however, there simply is not enough data relative to COVID-19 that can be used to train these machine learning algorithms or broader AI. Another area of AI that will likely become more popular as a result of COVID-19 are chatbots. With people still required to self-isolate if they, or anyone in their household, has symptoms of coronavirus, natural language processing will enable doctor’s to better understand people’s physical and mental conditions. Online chatbots, or ‘robot-doctors’, will eventually be able to collect data, advise on certain conditions and forward cases to medical professionals. As well as delivering the scalability that the NHS needs, doctors can reach the highest number of people, whilst also performing a diagnosis at a safe distance. That’s why it’s critical that we adapt our infrastructure to meet evolving requirements.
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Major bio-pharma directors say adoption of AI in their industry is still too slow
New research highlights the key blockers and attitudes towards AI adoption by large European bio-pharmaceutical groups and technology startups. While artificial intelligence (AI) was already a hot topic before, the COVID-19 pandemic has certainly intensified the discussions and developments of this technology in the health space. Yet, real implementations of AI solutions in this sector remain relatively sparse. The recently published white paper “Accelerating AI Adoption in Bio-Pharma through Collaboration” co-authored by experts at INSEAD, Agalio and Early Metrics, investigates the reasons behind this. Novartis, AstraZeneca, Janssen (Johnson & Johnson), Amgen, Sanofi – these are a few of the pharmaceutical companies from which the directors interviewed for this study hail from. Besides the ten corporates involved, the study also gathered the views of some of the leading AI startup founders in the healthcare space, including Owkin and Quantmetry. According to the study, the main blockers to the adoption of AI in bio-pharma are as follows: Lack of data in high quantity and quality that pharma companies can make accessible to startups, reducing the efficiency of their AI solutions Strict data protection and privacy regulations, leading to long processes to make technology compliant and creating barriers for innovative newcomers Lack of disruptive business models being created in the biopharmaceutical industry Risk-averse approaches to innovation within big pharma and the public sector denoting a need for a shift in mindset towards openness to collaboration and disruption While startups are recognised as a valuable source of innovation, corporates remain cautious in engaging with them. Bertille LeBihan, VC Manager and Healthtech Lead at Early Metrics comments: “We have seen that 1 in 3 AI startups targets health alongside multiple industries so these might not fully grasp the regulatory and technical specificities of the medical sector. On the flip side, AI founders that focus their activity on healthcare, about 12%, are often academics or doctors who lack the sales and business administration experience to build viable business models.” The study also shows lack of funding provided to AI startups in the healthcare sector is pushing some to pivot towards finance and other sectors with better access to funding. The data shows healthtech companies on average raise 12% less than their targeted sum. Martin Dubuc, General Manager at Biogen France states in the white paper: “Digital health has not shaken the core of healthcare yet.” Indeed, unlike in the mobility and retail spaces, disruptive business models are yet to appear in this sector which contributes to a slower pace of new technology adoption. However, the authors note that the coronavirus pandemic was a stressor that catalysed many innovative collaborations and projects. Jean-Michel Moslonka, CEO at Agalio and co-author of this paper, has seen that acceleration first-hand through the Datacovid project: “The severity of the COVID-19 crisis forces the pharmaceutical industry to move faster. In fact, it is catalysing automation in the clinical, medical, marketing and sales planning processes, down to drug volume demand forecasting and KPI monitoring. On top of this, it has created much more appetite for collaboration, including cross-competition partnerships. Examples of this new trend towards “pharma co-opetition” include competitors developing a COVID-19 vaccine together.” As Patrick Errard, Innovation Commission President at MEDEF and General Manager at Astellas France, says in the study: “A digital revolution does not happen thanks to one technology’s brilliance. It has to happen because the ecosystem is under such pressure that it has no other way out.” The sanitary crisis might have just provided that needed nudge. Moving forwards, pooling resources and data between ecosystem players and combining technologies such as blockchain with AI, are emerging as solutions to tackle key challenges in the adoption of AI. Chengyi Lin, Affiliate Professor of Strategy at INSEAD and co-author, comments: “During COVID-19, the healthcare sector demonstrated great strength and solidarity. The crisis also challenged the traditional way of practising medicine and accelerated digital transformation (via telemedicine, for instance). Post-COVID, this acceleration will call for more meaningful collaborations among all players, especially between the private and public sector, between pharma incumbents and startups, to create new ecosystem values. Moreover, partnerships with players from other industries such as tech, finance and consumer goods could also bring in additional learnings.” Ultimately, it seems European pharma directors agree on three things: one, AI is a technology that has untapped potential in healthcare; two, the adoption rate of AI in bio-pharma is too slow especially compared to other sectors; and three, unlocking the full value of AI in healthcare is impossible without collaboration between corporates, startups and the public sector.
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A Tale Of Two Startups—Health Sector Innovation In A Time Of Crisis
When Prime Minister Boris Johnson was discharged from hospital after three days in intensive care, he wasted little time in lavishing fulsome praise on the treatment he received from Britain’s National Health Service (NHS). His words were doubtless heartfelt - Johnson had, after all, been admitted for treatment after an initially mild COVID-19 infection morphed into something more serious - but they also represented good politics. The Prime Minister would have been aware that even in more normal times, the NHS is, by far and away, Britain’s most popular public institution. And in the midst of the Coronavirus crisis, healthcare workers are the heroes and heroines of the hour. Thus, in describing the NHS as “unconquerable,” he was aligning himself with the mood of the nation while also talking up the ability of the service to deliver life-saving care in the most extreme of circumstances. But the NHS - like healthcare systems almost everywhere - is struggling to cope. It still faces shortages of personal protection equipment (PPE) and just at the moment admissions to hospital are expected to peak, many key members of staff are stuck in self-isolation having displayed COVID-19 symptoms. The problem of staff absence is exacerbated by a continuing shortfall in testing to confirm whether or not individuals actually do have the virus. Meanwhile, more widely, it seems unlikely that Britain’s public health authorities will hit their testing target any time soon. Without widespread testing, it will be difficult to come out of lockdown. Difficult times. This Emmy Winning Rapper & Best-Selling Author Founded A Billion Dollar Startup And Runs The Height Of Mount Everest For Fun The Keys To Making A World-Class Virtual Pitch Or Presentation As ETF Launches A £167 Million Fund Are Investors Warming To Profit And Purpose Ventures So what role, if any, can entrepreneurs working in the healthtech sector play in helping the NHS - and indeed providers - cope with the pressures created by the pandemic? Now, this is probably not the time to bang the gong for Britain’s tech entrepreneurs. Politicians, managers and clinicians are engaged in a battle to get ahead of the COVID-19 outbreak and they don’t necessarily have the time or energy to actively bring new services and solutions on board at any kind of pace. That said, in areas such as testing, staff deployment and even the supply of equipment, a few private-sector startup companies may be able to provide genuinely useful and meaningful help. The question is, how easy is it for healthtech startups to engage with government and the NHS at this time? I spoke to two businesses that have had very different experiences. Sourcing Staff Melissa Morris is CEO and co-founder of Lantum, a healthcare workforce management platform that matches clinical capacity with demand. Having managed to get a foot in Britain’s public health system by enabling primary healthcare providers to source locums, it is now also helping to manage staffing requirements for some of the tele-healthcare operations, clinics and treatment centers that are engaged in fighting the virus. As Morris explains, securing a foothold within Britain’s healthcare system wasn’t straightforward or easy, not least because the NHS is made up of a myriad of providers. And depending on the nature of the solution, procurement of third party products or services might be done at a national level or locally. In addition, regular restructuring of the health service can mean that it is difficult to keep track of where purchasing decisions are made. Morris cites her own experience. “I started my career working at NHS London,” she says. “That was expanded to become NHS England.” This change, she adds: “Made is impossible to pinpoint decision-makers.” Lantum decided to focus on primary care. “We went door to door talking to GP practices,” she says. “And as we began to build market share, we had more to talk about when we approached other potential customers. We built relationships. Today, Lantum has around 21,000 clinicians on its books and provides a service to 2,000 GP practices. According to Morris, it is become easier for tech-driven startups to get on the NHS radar screen. “Things have got better since the arrival of Matt Hancock as Health Secretary,” she says. “He started NHS X, a central hub that makes decisions on anything digital within the NHS.” Lantum also took part in NHS Innovate, an accelerator program. “That gave us exposure to senior figures,” Morris adds. In terms of the COVID-19 crisis, Morris says the relationships and links built up over time have enabled Lantum to supply not only staff management services but also vital data that is helping the NHS manage spikes in demand for clinicians. Sniffing Out The Virus Ancon Medical has, so far, had less success in building relationships within the NHS, despite developing a technology that could, according to CEO Wesley Baker, prove a game-changer in testing for COVID-19. Founded by Dr. Boris Gorbunov, Ancon Medical has created a device that can detect a range of illnesses by analyzing chemical biomarkers in human breath. The applications include the early detection of cancers, ebola and, crucially, Coronaviruses. “We did a trial in the US to detect influenza viruses, “ says Baker. “We were blown away. We detected six cases of Coronavirus. We know we can do virus detection and we know we can detect Coronavirus.” Baker has spoken with Health Secretary Matt Hancock but, to date, the company hasn’t succeeded in persuading the U.K. or the E.U. to sanction trials. “However, we are getting traction in the U.S.,” Baker adds. And while Baker welcomes the creation of NHS X, so far it hasn’t helped Ancon, So what happens next? Baker says Ancon Medical’s tech offers a faster (results come back very quickly) and more cost-effective means to test for illnesses than conventional methods. It is also non-invasive, which may be a relief for those who currently face tests that involve swabs being inserted uncomfortably into the subject’s nostrils. In a bid to get that message across, Baker has spoken to his local MP and the company has also been in contact with former government health ministers, who may be able to provide introductions. Ancon is playing a longer game. Once a disease has been profiled the device can be applied to a wide range of analysis tasks. As such, the company’s selling point extends far beyond the current crisis. There is, however, clear frustration at the progress to date, given that the company's technology has already been used by the miltary in areas such as germ warfare detection. Given the growing size of the healthtech startup community - both here in the U.K. and elsewhere - the chances are a whole range of useful solutions are waiting to be deployed. But the truth is that public healthcare systems are often not easy to access and where tests and treatments are concerned adoption tends to be (rightly) a lengthy process due to the tests required. And truth to tell, while new solutions will be needed to face down the Coronavirus threat, the intensity of the crisis also limits the bandwidth that decision makers have at their disposal to make proper assessments.
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