A fresh round of free offers has emerged from technology suppliers, including Microsoft and IEG4, to support public sector organisations in dealing with the spread of coronavirus.
Microsoft has made a number of its products available on a free six-month basis for customers in healthcare, education, government and not-for-profits sectors. These include Power Apps, the associated portals, Power Automate and Power Virtual Agents, which can underpin community response applications.
A similar deal has been produced for Dynamics 365 Remote Assist, which allows technicians to collaborate with colleagues and experts from different locations, reducing travel and resolving some of the immediate obstacles. A medical clinician or technician maintaining critical equipment in the field, for example, can use Remote Assist on HoloLens, Android or iOS devices while sharing an in-context, real time view of the work site with an expert working from a different location.
Dynamics Customer Service, which includes digital messaging, has been offered on the same terms to support contact centre employees in working remotely.
This follows Microsoft’s early response to the pandemic in its agreement with NHS Digital to make its Teams collaboration suite available to health service organisations free of charge.
Online forms initiative
Software company IEG4 has made two online forms available for councils for free, initially for three months but to be reviewed as the pandemic develops. One is the request assistance form that makes it possible to capture key details on people – such as whether they live alone and what help they need – and which can be customised and branded to a council’s style.
The other is a revised version of the Social Welfare Fund form, with a specific circumstances tile and new category to cover coronavirus, which is now in use at Middlesbrough Council.
A similar offer has been released for the company’s interactive voice response (IVR) solution for benefits, which can be integrated with Northgate or Capita back office benefits systems. It is able to securely identify claimants and deal with frequently asked questions about their specific case and includes IEG4’s API and third party IVR technology.
Agilysys has reportedly developed a software named Helping Hands – working with the London Borough of Merton – as a contact management solution to track and monitor councils’ efforts to support vulnerable people. It can be used by all UK local authorities to support needs such as having someone to do shopping, collect prescriptions and take people to medical appointments.
TechMarketReview has reported that Helping Hands is based on Microsoft technology hosted in Azure, with components included Dynamics 365, Dynamics Power Portal and Power BI, and that there are plans to incorporate robotics to automate follow-up contact.
VR offering
Virtual reality simulation specialist Oxford Medical Simulation has made its system free to use for hospitals and universities in the UK. It said the system allows learners practice in virtual cases, such as treating patients with a shortness of breath or heart attack, and works in immersive virtual reality using headsets and as a screen based simulation.
Online support network Health Unlocked has launched a new community for people to support each other in self-isolation. Named Positive Wellbeing During Self-Isolation it is intended to help people focus on their mental and physical health through the relevant period.
Google has committed US$800 million globally to support healthcare organisations, governments and SMEs in efforts to combat the virus. It will be delivered through a mixture of grants, credits and funding.
The company is also making US$20 million of Google Cloud credits available for academic institutions and researchers to study potential therapies and vaccines and track critical data.
