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The New Zealand-based developer of software which helps make and track ethical decisions in the health and social care sectors has scooped a major award in the United Kingdom.
The Values Exchange, developed by AUT University Professor David Seedhouse through his company VIDe Ltd, has won the top prize at the prestigious Health Service Journal (HSJ) Awards in the Improving Healthcare with E-technology category.
Judges say the Values Exchange was selected for its distinguished and innovative use of information technology to develop an electronic forum for canvassing views for the delivery of healthcare.
Professor Seedhouse, director of AUT University's National Centre for Health and Social Ethics, says the Values Exchange enables people to put forward their opinions, preferences and moral reasoning via a web-based tool.
"It provides democratic debate and a paper trail on topics of professional and personal concern," he says. "The Values Exchange uses a unique single-framework questionnaire which automatically plots and compares values trends, highlighting both difference and consensus across different health and social groups."
