Talking HealthTech

In this episode of Talking HealthTech, Peter Birch sits down with Martin Moszczynski, CEO of Olinqua, to explore the evolution of hospital communications technology in Australia.They dig into the real-world challenges of moving away from pagers to smartphones, the infrastructure decisions that come with that shift, and what it takes to modernise communications across an entire hospital workforce.Martin shares insights from Olinqua's large-scale projects in Victoria, discussing the practicalities of tech adoption, the importance of system integration, and why the focus needs to be on frontline staff rather than patient-facing solutions.The conversation also touches on the tension between legacy systems and modern platforms, the role of AI in software development, and how real-time location technology is opening up new possibilities for workflow improvement and patient transfer logistics.This episode was recorded live during the Digital Health Festival 2026 in Melbourne, Australia and shares a deep-dive conversation captured at the event.Key Takeaways📱 Hospitals are transitioning from aging pagers to smartphones for greater capability, integration, and reliability🔄 Tech upgrades are often driven by infrastructure maturity and end-of-life legacy systems, not just a desire for new tech✨ Modern solutions centralise multiple workflows: emergency alerts, task management, and mobile duress onto a single platform👩‍⚕️ The main focus is improving staff experience, convenience, and freeing up time for direct patient care📍 Real-time location technology is a major area of investment, enabling efficient asset and patient tracking for workflow innovationTimestamps00:00 — Introduction and setting00:29 — Olinqua’s current projects01:17 — Pagers vs smartphones in hospitals03:13 — Reasons for upgrading communications tech05:55 — Recent deployment examples08:51 — Staff centricity vs patient centricity12:34 — Impact of AI and easy-to-create software15:55 — Olinqua’s priorities: location tech and innovationCheck out the episode and full show notes on the Talking HealthTech website.If you’re enjoying the show and want access to exclusive healthtech discussions, meetups, and member-only content, you can learn more about becoming a THT+ Solo Member here: talkinghealth.tech/solo_shownotesAnd if this episode was useful, leaving a review or sharing it with someone in the industry always helps.Mentioned in this episode:THT+ Digital Health Career ToolkitExplore the free THT+ Digital Health Career Toolkit, a five-day email series to help you clarify where you fit in digital health and take your next step: talkinghealth.tech/toolkit.THT+ Digital Health Career ToolkitExplore the free THT+ Digital Health Career Toolkit, a five-day email series to help you clarify where you fit in digital health and take your next step: talkinghealth.tech/toolkit.THT+ Digital Health Career ToolkitExplore the free THT+ Digital Health Career Toolkit, a five-day email series to help you clarify where you fit in digital health and take your next step: talkinghealth.tech/toolkit.

In this episode of Talking HealthTech, Peter Birch joins Dr Seref Arikan, Technical Lead at Ocean Health Systems, for a conversation that spans continents, with Peter joining from Australia and Dr Arikan speaking from London, to explore one of the most ambitious digital health initiatives the world has seen.Together, they unpack what it really means to unify health data across 26 nations and half a billion patients, and why the European Health Data Space is about far more than just technology.Dr Arikan walks through the landscape of health data standards, from HL7 FHIR to openEHR, and explains why having no shortage of standards does not automatically translate to interoperability at scale.The conversation also explores the EHDS's ambition to put patients firmly in control of their own health data and what that looks like in practice across dozens of different legislative and cultural environments.There is also a thoughtful discussion on the role of artificial intelligence in digital health, why this generation of AI is better understood as a skill than a tool, and what it means to be an AI-native clinician in a world where large language models can be as misleading as they are useful.The discussion also looks at Australia's SPARKED initiative and the lessons it offers for Europe, how feedback loops can prevent costly mistakes in large-scale health IT projects, and why stakeholder collaboration remains the hardest and most important part of getting any of this right.Key Takeaways🗂️ EHDS is a major European Union initiative aimed at creating a unified framework for health data use and exchange across member states.🌍 The project’s biggest challenge is coordinating communication and collaboration between a vast range of diverse stakeholders, including patients, clinicians, health systems, payers, and regulators.🔗 Standards such as HL7 FHIR, OpenEHR, SNOMED CT, and others play a central role, but aligning on which to use across the EU remains a complex, ongoing process.🤝 Fast and efficient stakeholder feedback loops, as demonstrated by the OpenEHR Clinical Knowledge Manager and Australia's SPARKED project, are critical to prevent costly missteps in developing compliant solutions.🤖 Artificial intelligence is viewed as a skill to amplify human capability rather than a replacement for stakeholders; good data is essential for effective AI use in healthcare.Timestamps00:00 - Introductions & speaker roles00:30 - Dr Seref Arikan career journey02:54 - What is the European Health Data Space?04:40 - EHDS and health data standards07:27 - EHDS objectives & patient focus10:44 - Challenges of implementation15:12 - The role of feedback & communication19:21: AI’s role in health data projects26:22: Reflections on Australia’s SPARKED project32:46: Ocean Health Systems updatesCheck out the episode and full show notes on the Talking HealthTech website.If you’re enjoying the show and want access to exclusive healthtech discussions, meetups, and member-only content, you can learn more about becoming a THT+ Solo Member here: talkinghealth.tech/solo_shownotes And if this episode was useful, leaving a review or sharing it with someone in the industry always helps.Mentioned in this episode:THT+ Digital Health Career ToolkitExplore the free THT+ Digital Health Career Toolkit, a five-day email series to help you clarify where you fit in digital health and take your next step: talkinghealth.tech/toolkit.THT+ Digital Health Career ToolkitExplore the free THT+ Digital Health Career Toolkit, a five-day email series to help you clarify where you fit in digital health and take your next step: talkinghealth.tech/toolkit.THT+ Digital Health Career ToolkitExplore the free THT+ Digital Health Career Toolkit, a five-day email series to help you clarify where you fit in digital health and take your next step: talkinghealth.tech/toolkit.