August 2008
Welcome to Quicksilva's monthly newsletter with thoughts from Quicksilva staff.
I remember the problems we had getting prospective customers and partners out to "the country" when we first moved to Wiltshire in 2000. Even though the M4 was designated the IT Corridor, people still had issues with travelling from London and joked about needing their passports (you know who you are). Part of my reasoning for moving here was not only the beautiful rural environment but also the feel of the place... creative, innovative and a place for ideas to grow.
It looks like others are starting to feel the same - Ian Pearson, Minister for Science and Innovation says "The South West of England is home to world leading centres of innovative expertise..." He also highlights the area as being increasingly buzzing with sustainable and renewable projects which also happens to be an interest of ours. Quicksilva are certified for ISO 14001 Environmental Management and we are very protective of our gardens and woods and the wildlife we encourage to share our space.
We’ve come up with our best R&D here and launched our flagship product Spinal Tap® too. Put it down to the energy lines of the South West if you like…I think it’s our Team, the innovation we encourage and the Quicksilva ethos.
Gayna
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Quicksilva achieves ISO 27001:2005 for its Information Security Management System
Information Security is a core attribute of Quicksilva’s business. With that in mind Quicksilva set out to ensure ISO 27001:2005 compliance by mid 2008. Driven by continuous improvement of services to our customers and the mantra “added value” Quicksilva successfully received ISO 27001:2005 certification for its consultancy and software development in July 2008. This achievement was a very proud moment for all at Quicksilva as it adds weight to our existing management systems that have been developing since our first certification, ISO 9001:2000 in 2002 and second, ISO 14001:2004 in 2005.
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Football Final - Quicksilva vs SciSys
This month saw the second clash between Quicksilva and SciSys over a game of football. Last year, Quicksilva won the match with a last minute goal and this year we were hoping to repeat that win.
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Consolidated Reporting
Community based services are now being delivered by an increasing number of groups. The private sector is delivering more care and there is a gradual shift to including voluntary and third sector bodies in the community-wide service delivery models.
Citizens are finding that their care now routinely involves having contact with both health and social service and other local government services as an increasingly complex array of agencies get together in an effort to provide a more comprehensive service. While this is an excellent goal, the integration of the data to support all-encompassing care cannot come too soon if each agency is to be able to deploy its resources effectively. Care staff need the complete picture if they are to perform at their best.
Enabling integrated care pathways, the way forward when many are providing services to the individual, is one Quicksilva service that is increasingly requested. Our knowledge of systems integration in a healthcare environment is a valuable resource in the current climate of change. We can help to tie up the loose ends to bring together the data necessary to:
- plan, manage and monitor complex Local Strategic Partnership (LSP) arrangements;
- generate information that coveys an end-to-end representation of the care pathway;
- assess the impact of such service models on the community that they serve;
- aggregate performance and outcome data for the community; and
- divert scarce resources appropriately.
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In the News... |
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Walsall begins in-house e-discharge project
From eHealth Insider
Walsall Manor Hospital has begun the first stage of an in-house electronic discharge summary project, designed to increase communication between the hospital and local GP practices.
Quicksilva thoughts...
The announcement from Walsall Manor Hospital that they are to implement their own e-discharge system, while awaiting Connecting for Health's own summary discharge solution, is encouraging as it demonstrates the need for better interoperability between primary and secondary care providers. It is good to see health care providers putting the patient first, using technology to improve the flow of patient information between primary and secondary care and therefore improving the experience of the patient.
It is somewhat disappointing to see that hospitals and GP practices are having to seek interim solutions while awaiting the system to be rolled out in a way that can support discharge information. It is positive that the longer term goals the system will help with both the problems and issues surrounding patient discharge and the information flows within this process.
These issues are already a high priority for GP practices and hospitals, as this article highlights. The goal of the NHS means that the messaging interchange should be available between all parties nationally. These interim measures will limit data flows between local parties and will mean localised pockets of data. I think once the system is able to support discharge functionality fully it will improve the patient experience between primary and secondary care, just as Walsall is achieving, but it will no longer matter if these parties are not local to each other.
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Royal Free says Cerner 'extremely challenging'
From eHealth Insider
Royal Free Hampstead NHS Trust has found the first deployment of the London cluster version of Cerner’s Millennium care records system demanding; with delays in some of its busiest clinics.
Quicksilva thoughts...
Deployments are never easy; months of planning can often come to nothing when an unanticipated problem rears its head in a client's environment. This article highlights the issues and frustrations that can be faced by all parties when carrying out a complicated large-scale deployment, especially when the application is critical to the end users.
Perhaps it's time that a deployment-centric application design approach is adopted when doing any design and development, an approach that can make deployments smoother and easier, reducing risk and increasing the effectiveness of applications. Of course, testing large-scale deployments is always an issue; and I have yet to see a test environment that can mimic the setup, scale and user activity that a live application will be put under.
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Bank customer data sold on eBay
From BBC News
An investigation is under way into how a computer containing bank customers' personal data was sold on eBay.
Quicksilva thoughts...
On a serious note, it's rather disappointing to read that a company that specialises in data security doesn't have the processes in place to prevent one of its staff from walking out with a couple of servers tucked under his arm, let alone checking that any confidential data was not on it in the first place. I certainly wouldn't want to have to come before our Quality Manager and explain how taking a server home wasn't a breach of a security policy.
On a lighter note, what a great advert for eBay. I have always said that no matter what you type in their search engine, someone, somewhere, is probably selling it. I must admit, I was really referring to some obscure part for my DB6 rather than any confidential financial information.
Whatever next... Russian battle plans?... Surely not!
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Personalised maps show the view from the street
From New Scientist Tech
Finding your way across an unfamiliar city is a challenge for most people's sense of direction. Software that generates personalised maps showing only relevant information, and carefully chosen views of selected landmarks, could make disorientation a thing of the past.
Quicksilva thoughts...
Directions are easy to follow, when you’re the one delivering them. For some who try to follow them, it can be far from easy to stay on track and "off the moors".
Now, forget about satnav for a moment. Everyone can remember a time when they have strayed off, or were not sure they were still on the correct path to somewhere? Ever heard directions like this?
"Carry on down the road, over the bridge. Turn left at the old church. Don't go past the big house on your right, turn left before the tree. You can't miss it."
Take the map drawn on a page, or a napkin, or scraped in the ground, or on a wall in a cave. It has the important features included; something that our internet based mapping technology has been poor at, until now. Personalised maps showing "carefully chosen views of selected landmarks" relevant to our destination can be generated using software.
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Quicksilva Caption Competition 5
How to enter
Email captions to captions@qxlva.com
Deadline: 25th September 2008.
We will include our favourite(s) in next month's newsletter!
Our favourite from last month
John was surprised to find his wife's medical records on the train home.
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"Computer games don't affect kids; I mean if Pac-Man affected us as kids, we'd all be running around in darkened rooms, munching magic pills and listening to repetitive electronic music." - Kristian Wilson, Nintendo Inc, 1989 |
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