A new focus on Health IT may hold the key to some of the cost effective solutions Clinical Commissioning Groups are searching for, said Chai Chuah (pictured), National Director of the National Health Board at the New Zealand Ministry of Health.

A profound shift of decision-making to the local NHS means that clinicians lead change in information technology, ensuring its freedom to innovate, the Health Secretary said at the launch of the Chief Clinical Information Officers network.

PatientShare, a new patient forum being used by the NHS, is giving patients for the first time direct access to former patients and unprecedented access to key hospital personnel. PatientShare could also potentially save the NHS millions of pounds.

Health secretary, Andrew Lansley, today launched the Chief Clinical Information Officers (CCIO) Leaders Network, a professional network designed to support doctors, nurses and allied health professionals who are stepping up to take the lead on IT and the use of information in healthcare.

Sollis has announced it has been commissioned to deploy its clinical commissioning suite throughout NHS South West London, providing the cluster with advanced contracting and challenge management functionality.

eHealth Insider (EHI) launches the EHI Awards 2012 in association with BT today with three new categories, 'Outstanding work in health imaging informatics', 'Innovation in Healthcare Integration' and the 'CCIO Campaign Award for Clinical IT Leadership'.

PCTI, the electronic document management specialists, announce the next phase of Docman BackOffice, a range of specific apps to streamline the back office function of a GP practice.

Apollo Medical Systems has announced it has successfully partnered with Insight UK Ltd to win the tender to deliver data for the National Diabetes Audit.

Healthcare Computing has announced a new contract with Surrey and Sussex Healthcare NHS Trust (SaSH) to provide an IT Service Desk service, 1st line support and a hosted incident management system.