Digital Health Coffee Time Briefing ☕

Your morning summary of digital health news, information and events to know about if you want to be “in the know”.

👇 News

🙍‍♂️ Meridian Health Ventures has announced the launch of its second cohort of startups joining the Innovations in Mental Health Fund’s 12-week immersion programme. The group of 19 early-stage startups focused on depression, anxiety, and psychosis-related disorders will have the opportunity to pitch for investment of up to £1 million. The NHS-backed mental health venture fund is delivered in partnership with South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust.

🧠 Digital health company Psyomics has announced the UK launch of beseen for neurodiversity, a digital platform designed to address shortcomings in ADHD and autism spectrum disorder diagnosis and care. The platform aims to streamline triage, automate data capture, and integrates with electronic health records to ensure clinicians have accurate patient information.

🎶A gesture-controlled music app designed to help people with cognitive or physical impairments create music through movement is launching variants for carers and care professionals. LIFT Music and LIFT at Home allow users to conduct sound, rhythm, and emotion with simple hand movements using a smartphone or tablet.

🏦 The Greek government and Sword Health have joined forces to build one of Europe’s first AI-powered front doors to healthcare and serve more than 10 million citizens. The collaboration will start by strengthening Greece’s new National Health Information Line, which is the first point of contact for millions of citizens. By integrating AI into its triage, the government aims to expand capacity, improve response times, and deliver more consistent support nationwide.

💷 The Academy of Medical Sciences and Wellcome have agreed a new five-year agreement worth £27.3 million to support biomedical and health researchers across the UK. The partnership aims to further the UK’s position as a global leader in nurturing biomedical and health research talent.

❓ Did you know that?

Patients at nearly all GP practices (98.7%) in England can now access their surgery online following government changes allowing patients to submit online consultation requests during core hours.

NHS England says that a record eight million online requests were submitted by patients in October 2025 after the requirement was introduced. This was an increase of one-fifth on September 2025 and an increase of two-thirds on October 2024.

For the first time, the Office for National Statistics Health Insight Survey shows that more people contacted their GP practice online than by phone.

Health secretary Wes Streeting said: “In the 21st century, patients expect to be able to manage healthcare at their fingertips, and so they should. We organise so much of our lives online, there’s no reason the NHS should be any different.”

🎧 What we’re listening to

This month’s Problems Worth Solving podcast from Healthia features Dr David Chaney from Diabetes UK discussing the lived reality behind the statistics and breakthroughs of diabetes care.

Around one in five people in the UK are living with diabetes, prediabetes, or undiagnosed type 2, yet only around 60% receive their annual care processes.

The podcast covers the mental load patients face every day when calculating what food they can eat and how much they can exert themselves, the stigma attached to the condition, how that stigma pushes people away from attending appointments, and how access to treatments still depends too much on geography.

It also delves into why the first year after diagnosis is so vital, and how empathic consultations can build patient confidence.

🚨 This week’s events

12 December, 12.30-1.30pm, Online – Allied Health Professionals and the Digital Commitments of the 10 Year Plan