Some of the latest innovations in healthcare including a new radiotherapy centre in Milton Keynes, streamlined prescriptions in Hywel Dda University Health Board and a UK distribution deal for prostate biopsy technology.
New radiotherapy centre opens in Milton Keynes
A new £17 million radiotherapy centre built by contractor Morgan Sindall Construction has opened in Milton Keynes. It spares hundreds of cancer patients each year from a lengthy 70-mile round trip to Oxford for treatment.
OUH Radiotherapy @ Milton Keynes is run by an expert multidisciplinary team from Oxford University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust (OUH) and is linked to the Milton Keynes University Hospital NHS Trust Cancer Centre. Ergéa helped with the installation of equipment and technology at the new radiotherapy centre, enabling treatment on a TrueBeam Linear Accelerator equipped with the latest Identify system.
This surface-guided radiotherapy technology uses 3D imaging to position precisely and monitor patients during treatment, improving accuracy while also making patients comfortable. This is the first Linear Accelerator (Linac) of its kind in the Milton Keynes area. As part of its long-term managed service deal with OUH, Ergéa has also provided a CT-Simulator to support high-quality, integrated cancer care.
UK distribution deal for prostate biopsy technology
CamPROBE – a technology developed to perform transperineal prostate biopsies under local anaesthetic – will now reach more hospitals and clinics through a partnership between group companies Medovate and JEB Technologies, and a newly appointed UK distributor Aquilant.
The device aims to offer a less invasive, lower-risk alternative to traditional transrectal biopsy methods, providing access to all areas of the prostate whilst reducing the risk of complications such as infections. Unlike conventional methods, CamPROBE requires only two puncture points and allows simultaneous anaesthetic delivery, which is intended to help provide a more comfortable experience for patients.
The project was supported by Cambridge Enterprise, the University’s innovation arm, and Health Tech Enterprise, which provided commercialisation and IP expertise. A grant from the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) supported the clinical development and evaluation of the device.
Streamlined prescriptions in Hywel Dda University Health Board
Hywel Dda University Health Board (UHB), which serves a population of more than 385,000 people in Carmarthenshire, Ceredigion and Pembrokeshire, has chosen Better as its preferred technology partner to deliver electronic prescribing and medicines administration (ePMA), which will see the roll-out of digital systems to replace paper-based processes. The system will reduce the risk of medication errors by ensuring prescriptions are clear, legible and complete, with built-in safety checks for allergies and dosage accuracy. The ePMA system is part of the national Digital Medicines programme, led by Digital Health and Care Wales (DHCW), to ensure that the prescribing, dispensing and administration of medicines is easier, safer and more efficient for patients and clinicians.
Elsewhere, Better and outsourced medicines management provider Speeds Healthcare have finalised an agreement to roll out the Better Meds software across 55 mental health sites in the UK. The partnership will see services move from manual recording on paper charts and whiteboards to streamlined, electronic prescribing and ePMA with clinical decision support. The implementation will be staggered over three phases. Phase one is planned to go live in October and will inform further stages of the rollout, with the intention of the system being live across sites by the end of 2026.
Royal Devon first to use UpToDate clinical decision support software
Royal Devon University Healthcare is the first NHS Trust to use Wolters Kluwer Health’s clinical decision support software UpToDate. The Trust includes two acute hospitals and 17 community hospitals with over 1,100 beds.
“By leveraging the data, analytics and AI capabilities now available within UpToDate, we can further support medical education and optimise clinical decision-making, helping us to deliver the best possible care for all patients, and enabling our local population to stay well,” said Adrian Harris, chief medical officer at the Trust. Clinicians can now receive verbatim answers using natural language queries.
Airwave Healthcare to equip bedrooms at the new NHS National Rehabilitation Centre
Airwave Healthcare has been selected to equip bedrooms at the new NHS National Rehabilitation Centre on the Stanford Hall Rehabilitation Estate near Loughborough with intelligent bedside terminals.
The terminals will be integrated into the NRC’s systems, allowing patients to control their own environment – operating room blinds, lighting and heating – which will be important to help patients maintain their independence as they recover from severe illnesses or injuries – including traumatic brain injuries.
Electronic patient record integration will mean that patients are kept informed as active participants in their rehabilitation – with live access to information on their estimated discharge date, medications, diet, care teams and other important insights relevant to the individual. The NRC will be run and staffed by Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust and is due to open later this year.
KeyTracker launches mini e30 tracking system
KeyTracker, a designer and supplier of secure key and asset management systems, has launched the mini e30, a compact electronic key cabinet designed for small clinical and healthcare teams.
The system automatically tracks who has which keys, when, and for how long, and sends overdue alerts with audit reports to management, helping to reinforce user responsibility.
“Developed to match an increasingly demanding world of smart accountability, improved efficiency and fast access to authorised users, this cabinet offers a practical and cost-effective solution for businesses with limited space or fewer keys to manage, all while retaining the advanced capabilities of our larger systems,” said Andy Smith, director of KeyTracker.
