Category: News
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Practice Management Conference 2025
This is your opportunity to join us for sessions focused on exciting upcoming features for your practice management system, along with dedicated training sessions to help you make the most of your software.
You can expect to hear more on:
- Our first integrated AI – A new way to reduce admin time, built right into your workflow
- STC Finder – Enhanced with a year of feedback and iteration – more refined, more accurate and more useful
- Pippo showcase – redeveloped and robustly tested through the Centric network
- SureMed – Small changes, big impact – with even greater time savings for PMA form handling.
- CDM – Practical new tools to support chronic care – smarter finders and forward looking features
- Socrates Cloud – The Socrates you know, now in the cloud – secure, familiar and ready for what’s next
- Dedicated training sessions – Practical sessions for Socrates, Health One and HPM. Get hands-on with expert guidance
Come along to see how the latest innovations will help you create efficiencies and drive revenue for your practice.
Places are filling up fast so don’t miss out and make sure you register for your place here
Practice Management Conference 2025
This is your opportunity to join us for sessions focused on exciting upcoming features for your practice management system, along with dedicated training sessions to help you make the most of your software.
You can expect to hear more on:
- Our first integrated AI – A new way to reduce admin time, built right into your workflow
- STC Finder – Enhanced with a year of feedback and iteration – more refined, more accurate and more useful
- Pippo showcase – redeveloped and robustly tested through the Centric network
- SureMed – Small changes, big impact – with even greater time savings for PMA form handling.
- CDM – Practical new tools to support chronic care – smarter finders and forward looking features
- Socrates Cloud – The Socrates you know, now in the cloud – secure, familiar and ready for what’s next
- Dedicated training sessions – Practical sessions for Socrates, Health One and HPM. Get hands-on with expert guidance
Come along to see how the latest innovations will help you create efficiencies and drive revenue for your practice.
Places are filling up fast so don’t miss out and make sure you register for your place here
Clanwilliam Announces Appointment of Dr Sean Higgins as Chief Product Officer
Dublin, Ireland – 9th April 2025 – Global healthcare technology company Clanwilliam has announced the appointment of Dr Sean Higgins as Chief Product Officer. As part of his new role, Dr Higgins will lead the integration of Clanwilliam’s pioneering suite of healthcare technologies in organisations across the country.
A GP with over 15 years’ experience in primary care, Dr Sean is an experienced leader in the development of primary and secondary healthcare technology solutions. He was previously head of technology innovation at Centric Health, which manages the delivery of healthcare to over 400,000 patients in Ireland each year. In 2021 he founded Billink Payments, an integrated system for clinical practises to simplify the management of payments, which has been adopted by over 700 clinical practices in Ireland. Commenting on the appointment, Eileen Byrne, Managing Director of Clanwilliam Ireland, said,
“I’m delighted that Dr Sean Higgins has joined Clanwilliam as the new Chief Product Officer. Dr Sean has a distinguished track record as both a GP and healthcare innovator that will help to ensure we remain responsive to the changing needs of healthcare professionals across Ireland.
Dr Sean Higgins, Chief Product Officer at Clanwilliam, commented,
“It’s a privilege to take on the role of Chief Product Officer at Clanwilliam and help to advance digital healthcare innovation across Ireland and the globe. I’m committed to working closely with clinicians and healthcare organisations to ensure that we continue to understand and meet their fast-evolving needs.”
ENDS/
About Clanwilliam
Clanwilliam is a global healthcare technology group dedicated to improving healthcare for everyone.
Our 1000+ global team members and 25+ core products and services empower over 1.5 million healthcare professionals worldwide to provide exceptional patient care. From pharmacy to GP systems, hospitals to aged care, analytics to messaging platforms, Clanwilliam products and services touch most parts of the patient care journey.
We support incredible healthcare professionals and organisations, including the Irish Defence Forces, the NHS, the HSE, Medicare, the Australian Antarctic Division Polar Medicine Unit, Exeter University, Cancer Research UK, and the Royal Flying Doctor Service of Australia – all of us driven by that uniting mission to improve healthcare.
Media Contacts
Q4PR
Conor Shearman
+353 (0) 860596082
Toniq launches New Zealand’s first electronic controlled-drug register for pharmacy sector
New Zealand pharmacies are invited to go digital and transition to Toniq Guard, the nation’s first Medsafe-approved electronic controlled-drug register.
Launching Toniq Guard today, Christchurch-based solutions developer Toniq is preparing for the roll-out of their innovative and labour-saving technology to over 850 pharmacies.
The company says the cloud-based solution has further applications outside the pharmacy sector with organisations and services required to manage controlled drugs.
Toniq senior product manager Luke Tilson said the company had designed the solution so it could be integrated into other industry sectors in the future.
In coming weeks, the priority is to assist the vast network of New Zealand pharmacies to make the leap forward with the new digital technology, he said.
“The electronic controlled-drug register is integrated with the Toniq Dispensary system,” Mr Tilson said. “Many pharmacists have already had input and fully supported the initiative through a trial program with Medsafe oversight.”
He said support was overwhelmingly positive as feedback indicated the solution reduced the administrative burden on pharmacists.
“Pharmacies are required to keep detailed records of any controlled drugs in stock, such as opioids and medicinal cannabis, given the higher level of risk they pose,” he said. “The current process is manual, so it takes considerable time and effort to maintain the registers and achieve the accuracy you need to manage controlled drugs and meet the scrutiny of auditing.
“Toniq Guard has labour-saving automation, accuracy and security, and as a safeguard there is a requirement for an authenticated pharmacist in the process.
“Toniq Guard produces accurate records of the number and type of drugs in storage, leaving the pharmacist to focus on the core business, looking after patients and customers.”
Mr Tilson said Toniq Guard was in development for several years and formally approved for implementation this week by regulatory body Medsafe.
END
Media enquiries:
Ivan Nola, Marketing Manager (Clanwilliam ANZ)
Email: ivan.nola@clanwilliamanz.com
About Toniq
Toniq Ltd has been providing software solutions tailored for pharmacy and retail for over 20 years. Toniq is based in Christchurch with support staff in Auckland. Our client base is New Zealand, Cook Islands, Samoa, and Fiji.
Their offerings include:
- Toniq Retail: A point-of-sale system designed for retail stores, helping manage sales, inventory, and customer interactions efficiently.
- Toniq Dispensary: Pharmacy dispensary software that streamlines medication management, integrates with robotic systems, and supports community care, hospital discharge, and rest home patients2.
- Cloud-Based Tools: Solutions like medication chart services to enhance operational efficiency and patient care.
New eReferral form for Vietnam War veterans
Veterans’ Affairs New Zealand has launched a new eReferral form for Vietnam veterans undertaking their Annual Medical Assessment (AMA).
Vietnam veterans are eligible for the free AMA, which can be carried out by their GP and is funded by Veterans’ Affairs New Zealand.
More than 3,000 New Zealand military and civilian personnel served in Vietnam between 1963 and 1975.
The AMA assesses the physical and mental health and wellbeing of Vietnam veterans, many of whom were exposed to a toxic environment resulting in long-term health problems.
The results of the AMA are reviewed by Veterans’ Affairs New Zealand and medical treatment and costs are covered for any conditions related to time served in the war.
New form makes it easier to access services
Veterans’ Affairs New Zealand principal clinical advisor Dr Mike O’Reilly says the new National form makes it easier for veterans to access services through a regular review.
“The process of submitting the AMA is now much easier, faster and more secure, which benefits both veterans and GPs.”
Mike says that in the past the process was paper based, which was time-consuming and involved a lot of back and forth.
“The hard copy form was sent to the veteran, they had to fill it out and take it to their GP, the GP had to fill it out then hand it back to the veteran who had to then send it to us.”
He says this was onerous for veterans and difficult for GPs.
Now the GP simply fills out the AMA electronically, with all the necessary documents attached, and sends it directly to Veterans’ Affairs New Zealand.
“The more information, and more complete information we have, the easier and quicker it is to process the form and get the support to our veterans.”
Building AMA into care plan beneficial
Mike says many veterans are concerned about the ongoing effects of the war on their health.
“It was a very inhospitable environment. Many were exposed to toxins such as Agent Orange and the impact on their health is a major concern,” he says.
“The AMA is a way for veterans, and us, to be able to longitudinally respond to changes in their health and support them.”
Mike says there is great value in GPs asking patients if they’ve ever served in the New Zealand Defence Force.
“If they are Vietnam veterans, then having a conversation about the AMA and building that into their care plan is hugely beneficial.”
How to send a Vietnam Veterans Annual Medical Assessment eReferral
The Veterans’ Affairs Vietnam Veterans Annual Medical Assessment form is available to GPs nationwide.
To submit a Vietnam Veterans AMA:
- Open the patient record within your PMS
- Select the HL Icon within the PMS to access the HealthLink launch page
- Click on “Veterans Affairs – Vietnam Veterans AMA” (under the referred services section) to launch the form.
We’re Listening: HealthLink Pauses Subscription Rollout for Consultation
At HealthLink, our priority is to make sure GPs can provide the most efficient and cybersecure service when it comes to their patient’s health data.
Every day, we send millions of important medical communications all over Australasia. That’s why we’re committed to investing in the highest quality data-protection technology that protects doctors and patients. Our sector is making innovative technological bounds at a rapid pace and we want to make sure our technology, services and support provide the same high-level efficiency across regional, rural and metro health systems.
To continue to be sustainable and provide our high-quality service, we’re seeking to introduce a robust contract and subscription model for all GP practices. This model will include all of our premium service offerings, such as comprehensive message inclusions and validation, provider directory access, SmartForms access to key national and state referral pathways and round-the-clock support.
We’ve heard the concerns from our GPs around the subscription model and how it applies to practices and various working challenges, such as part time doctors. Following this announcement of our intent we have paused the rollout of this new model while we explore all options and undergo a period of consultation over the coming months with stakeholders. We are actively consulting with the Royal Australian College of General Practitioners (RACGP), our customers, and other key stakeholders to ensure our system remains efficient, fair to all GPs and mindful of the growing needs of Australian doctors and practices.
We’re committed to open communication and will provide updates once the consultation period ends, and we are clear on next steps.
If you have any questions, please feel free to contact us at gpsubscriptions@healthlink.net.
Dictate.IT launches AI-powered Clinical Assistant
New technology will transform doctor-patient consultations saving clinicians time and reducing the burden of administration
Dictate.IT, part of Clanwilliam, a global healthcare technology and services group, has added an AI-powered clinical assistant to its market leading clinical documentation software products. The assistant listens to and transcribes the doctor-patient conversations in real-time, automatically creating consultation summaries, clinical notes and clinical documentation from the conversation transcript. The assistant saves time for healthcare professionals, reducing the burden of administration and allowing clinicians to spend more time on patient care.
The assistant is fully integrated with existing Dictate.IT clinical documentation products, so clinicians can start using it straight away, avoiding the need for busy hospitals to implement new software.
Dictate.IT is committed to the highest levels of security and privacy, meaning that no healthcare data is passed to a third party service for processing, and all healthcare data is stored within Dictate.IT’s own secure environment in the UK.
At every stage, the healthcare professional remains in control. They can check notes and clinical documentation against the transcript, and use a ‘smart recommendations’ option to identify points at which more information or investigation is required.
“We’re delighted to be bringing an innovative, AI-powered clinical assistant to our UK hospital customers.
We’ve been focused on giving doctors back valuable time through speech-to-text functionality for many years. Leveraging AI to create accurate doctor-patient conversation transcripts, consultation summaries, clinical notes and clinical documentation is a natural evolution of our expertise.
We look forward to working together with our customers on how to best leverage our innovations to solve their challenges and free up their valuable time.”
Stuart van Rooyen, Managing Director of Clanwilliam (UK)
The launch of the new technology comes at a time when the NHS is under huge pressure, and there is an intense need for tools to improve productivity, while addressing staff burnout, and delivering a more personalised service for patients.
In England, new health and social care secretary Wes Streeting has made a “move from analogue to digital” one of his three pillars for healthcare reform, and digital solutions are expected to feature heavily in the ten-year plan for the NHS expected next spring.
NHS staff have called for “long overdue” investments in health technology, and in a recent survey by the Health Foundation, 81% of respondents were in favour of its use for administrative tasks.
Dictate.IT’s AI-powered clinical assistant aligns with these developments. It acts as an intelligent virtual note taker, dramatically improving consultation efficiency by automating the documentation of patient interactions, creating appropriate and clinically relevant summaries, and integrating with the EPR or clinical system.
The assistant can be used with every doctor-patient consultation. Capturing and structuring data from these consultations is important for compliance, quality measures, care continuity, and in many cases reimbursement.
But traditionally it is also a multi-step process that takes time away from seeing patients. While many providers are exploring the use speech-to-text and natural language processing to streamline this process, generative AI helps take the workflow one step further.
By harnessing Dictate.IT’s investment in cutting edge, medically specific generative AI, recorded consultations can be turned to clinical notes and documentation that is ready to use within the clinical workflow.
The technology is available right now for NHS trusts and private hospitals.