26 November 2014, London, UK.Hitachi Europe Ltd., a wholly owned subsidiary of Hitachi Ltd. (TSE: 6501, "Hitachi") has announced that in association with The Guardian, it will be hosting a seminar on Social Innovation and the Future of Healthcare.
The number of people in the UK over 65 years old is growing rapidly. Coupled with a predicted upswing in obesity-related illnesses and other 'lifestyle' conditions, this presents significant new challenges for a healthcare sector already under pressure.
At the same time, advances in 'smart' healthcare systems - informatics, biometrics and other smart technologies - promise to dramatically reconceive the delivery of healthcare in the UK. Prevention, over treatment, seems poised to dominate healthcare in the future. While these technologies will empower patients to take a more central role in their care, they also bring up questions about the implications of smart healthcare systems upon ethical issues, the role of the medical profession and of healthcare facilities themselves.
The seminar, entitled 'How can technology and Social Innovation shape the healthcare system for the future?' will discuss the impacts of technological advances in the healthcare sector within the UK, risks and benefits including ethical issues around big data, the potential to adapt to the changing nature of disease and the changing roles of patients, professionals and infrastructure.
Key experts speaking at the event include: Jo Confino, executive editor of the Guardian, Adrian Conduit, Hitachi Consulting UK Healthcare Practice director of business development, Eva Reichl, Hitachi Data Systems EMEA director healthcare and life sciences, Alan Payne, Bupa digital director, and Katherine Rake, chief executive, Healthwatch.
Healthcare forms a key pillar of the global rollout of Hitachi's Social Innovation
Business, providing market-leading infrastructure solutions underpinned by highly reliable and highly efficient IT technology, as part of its 2015 Mid-term Management Plan. In the UK, Hitachi established the European Big Data Research Laboratory, with a focus on health care in June 2013 and has started Proof of Concept projects for the use of informatics to improve healthcare with the National Health Service (NHS) England (Greater Manchester).
This is the third seminar Hitachi has hosted in conjunction with The Guardian. The event will take place from 6.00am-9.15pm on Wednesday 26 November 2014 at The Guardian, King’s Place, York Way, London, N1 9GU.
For further information, please visit:
http://www.theguardian.com/sustainable-business/2014/oct/29/technology-social-innovation-shape-future-healthcare-system-free-event
About Hitachi Europe Ltd.
Hitachi Europe Ltd., a subsidiary of Hitachi, Ltd., is headquartered in Maidenhead, UK. The company is focused on its Social Innovation Business - delivering innovations that answer society's challenges. Hitachi Europe and its subsidiary companies offers a broad range of information & telecommunication systems; rail systems, power and industrial systems; industrial components & equipment; automotive systems, financial services; digital media & consumer products and others with operations and research & development Laboratories across EMEA.