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

✅ North Lincolnshire Council rolled out System C’s Liquidlogic education case management, adults case management and children’s case management as an integrated all-in-one single platform solution in Autumn 2025. The integrated system provides a single, real-time view of family records, enabling council staff to plan and deliver services more effectively.

🤖 A trial for treating prostate cancer has launched in the UK, sponsored by US company PROCEPT BioRobotics and supported by the National Institute for Health and Care Research. It is investigating whether Aquablation, a novel therapy using robotics, AI and real-time imaging, compares favourably to traditional surgery, known as a radical prostatectomy.

💪 The Isle of Man has opened applications for its global 2026 Innovation Challenge, with a focus on MedTech and HealthTech. Tech companies apply to work with the Isle of Man government and its health partners to develop or adapt a solution that tackles real issues in the healthcare system. Those selected then collaborate with clinicians, public sector teams and the Island’s digital ecosystem to refine their product. Finalists from each category will pitch their developed solution to an expert panel and live audience at the finale event on 25 June 2026.

🤝 The TIC Salut i Social Foundation, on behalf of the Government of Catalonia, has entered into a Memorandum of Understanding with ORCHA Health to advance a shared vision within Catalonia and the United Kingdom: a safer, more connected, and more efficient digital health ecosystem across Europe. Over the next 12 months, both parties will work closely to strengthen their understanding of each other’s assurance processes, align methodologies where appropriate, and test shared workflows with digital health suppliers.

🚀 Amazon Web Services (AWS) has launched its AWS Breaking Barriers Challenge, a three-day multi-city hackathon where students and industry professionals will collaborate alongside AWS experts, technology partners, academic institutions and students, to address real-world challenges faced by 20 charities across healthcare innovation, sustainability solutions, and social impact by using generative AI. Winning ideas in each location will be made a reality with charities receiving up to $200,000 (£149,370) in AWS cloud credits and technical support.

❓ Did you know that?

NHS patients face avoidable delays and poorer health outcomes due to outdated technology, according to new data released by global technology services and solutions provider Presidio.

Presidio commissioned an independent survey of 1,008 frontline workers, including 250 from the UK, 258 from Ireland and 500 from the US.

It found that almost a quarter (23%) of those surveyed lack the staff and budget required to modernise systems and rely on multiple workarounds to complete basic tasks (25%).

In the UK, it found that 30% clinicians experience technology-related delays multiple times per week, 14% at least once a week, and 23% say delays occur daily.

📖 What we’re reading

A scoping review published in The Lancet Digital Health, led by Alexandra Zimmer, analysed 77 studies evaluating digital cough monitoring tools to assess the clinical practicality of continuous cough counting and its ability to address known limitations of patient-reported symptom data in real-world care settings.

The review highlighted automated cough monitoring as a promising digital biomarker for tracking disease activity and treatment response over time.

While traditional evaluation often relies on short-term cough monitoring, the review emphasises the necessity of longitudinal data to understand disease progression.

It also identifies a shift from contact-based, semi-autonomous devices (which require physical proximity) to accessible wearable and smartphone-based solutions.

Peter Small, managing director and chief medical officer of Hyfe, one of the tools included in the study, said: “Objective, passive, and longitudinal monitoring tools are essential to complement subjective symptom reporting and help close the gap between clinical trials and everyday care.

“By combining objective data with patient experiences, we can improve therapeutic endpoint evaluation and enhance existing treatment protocols to better serve patients.”

🚨 Upcoming events

10 February 2026, 12.30-1.30pm, Online – Why History Matters: Strengthening Maternity And Neonatal Safety Through Reliable Access To Historical Data