International

LONDON, Eng. – The government of the UK has abandoned a homegrown coronavirus contact-tracing app after spending three months and millions of pounds on technology that experts had repeatedly warned would not work. In an embarrassing U-turn, Health Secretary Matt Hancock (pictured) said the NHS would switch to an alternative designed by the US tech companies Apple and Google, which is months away from being ready. Read More

SAN FRANCISCO – EHR vendor Practice Fusion will pay an historic US$145 million fine after admitting to a kickback scheme aimed at increasing opioid prescriptions, according to a statement released by the Department of Justice for the District of Vermont. Read More

LONDON, UK – As part of overhauling its technology systems, the National Health Service (NHS) in the U.K. said it will ban fax machines. Health and Social Care Secretary Matt Hancock (pictured) has forbid purchase of new fax machines starting in 2019 and ordered complete end of their use by April of the following year. Read More

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Cerner now has the go-ahead for a multibillion-dollar no-bid contract to update the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs’ health records system, after nearly a year of waiting. Read More

BALTIMORE, Md. – In the first study to quantify the contribution of emergency department care to overall U.S. healthcare, researchers at the University of Maryland School of Medicine (UMSOM) have found that nearly half of all US hospital-associated medical care is delivered by emergency departments. Read More

LONDON, UK – Hospitals across the U.K. diverted ambulances and cancelled appointments earlier this month after their computers and phones were disrupted by a cyberattack. The attack has affected at least 16 organizations within the U.K.’s state-run National Health Service, according to an NHS statement. Read More

BIRMINGHAM, UK – A project taking place at Birmingham Children’s Hospital using wireless technology to predict deterioration in seriously ill children has recruited its 1,000th patient. Read More

WASHINTON, DC – Newly appointed secretary of the Department of Veterans Affairs, David Shulkin, M.D. (pictured), said the VA is officially switching to a commercial, off-the-shelf EHR system, replacing its internally developed VistA software. Read More

TORONTO – Six Canadian innovations showing evidence of early promise for improving global health will “transition-to-scale” thanks to new support from Grand Challenges Canada, funded by the Government of Canada. Read More

RIYADH, Saudi Arabia – King Khaled Eye Specialist Hospital (KKESH) has announced that it has achieved Stage 7 on the Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society’s (HIMSS) Electronic Medical Record Adoption Model (EMRAM). It’s the first hospital in the Middle East to achieve this global recognition. Read More