PenCS wins United Nations-based World Summit Award 2023
Wednesday, March 06 2024
Imagine if you could predict a patient's risk of unplanned hospitalisation in the next 12 months?
PenCS is thrilled to announce that we have won the WSA Award in the Health and Wellbeing category for our Risk of Hospitalisation Module that is implemented across our software applications for General Practice and Aboriginal Member Services and Population Health Management. The WSA (World Summit Awards) is a global initiative that awards digital solutions making significant contributions to the attainment of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
PenCS is pleased to now form part of WSA’s knowledge society celebrating the best of innovation and technology for its contribution to sustainable healthcare. The Winners ceremony takes place in Patagonia, Chile from 14th to 17th of April, 2024. PenCS was one of 40 WSA Winners 2023, chosen from 466 nominations in 88 countries. The WSA Award recognises the Risk of Hospitalisation Module as a visionary step by PenCS towards fostering health equity and reducing healthcare disparities in Australia, aligning well with the United Nations’ SDGs.
The Risk of Hospitalisation Module offers evidence-based, near-real-time monitoring of patient cohorts, ensuring that healthcare providers can proactively identify individuals at risk. The Module is strengthening Australia's healthcare system using an Artificial Intelligence (AI) algorithm to shift the focus to prevention in primary care.
Developed using de-identified primary care data, the model considers patient demographics, their socio-economic index of relative advantage/disadvantage, physiological information, medications, chronic conditions, pathology categories according to abnormal levels in test results, and lifestyle factors such as alcohol and tobacco use.
In 2023, the Risk of Hospitalisation Module identified 166,694 at risk patients, across 51 practices, who presented a potential cost of $1,068,761,600 to the healthcare system. Recalling these patients into the practice for review by their General Practitioner, may reduce potentially preventable hospitalisation. If we calculate 750,000 potentially preventable hospitalisations per year and we have identified 166,694 then this equates to 22.22% impact, acknowledging some variables are beyond the control of healthcare providers.
PenCS’ CEO, Edweana Wenkart, commented:
“Our Risk of Hospitalisation AI Module is addressing a critical issue in Australia's healthcare system, improving preventative, value-based healthcare by supporting healthcare providers to identify individuals at risk of potentially preventable hospitalisation. Our data-driven insights technology is having a measurable health impact. We are thrilled to have won the WSA Award and thank you to the WSA Jury Members. We are passionate about building health informatics technology solutions that have a positive impact at point of care.”
PenCS’ Chief Medical Advisor and GP, Dr Kean-Seng Lim, added: "We're committed to transforming proactive health in Australia, empowering prevention rather than reaction."
About World Summit Awards
World Summit Awards (WSA) is a unique awards system, selecting and promoting local digital innovation to improve society. Combining an ongoing series of international events and activities with a global network of start-ups, social entrepreneurs, mentors, jurors, speakers, experts, government leaders, academia, and civil society, WSA is an international platform for cutting edge examples of how Information and Communications Technologies (ICTs) can impact society in a positive way. With 20 years of international experience, WSA is a quality seal for digital content with societal impact in 182 participating countries.