Trust appoints first Chief Clinical Information Officer

Dr Toral Thomas has been appointed as the first Chief Clinical Information Officer (CCIO) at Norfolk and Suffolk NHS Foundation Trust to improve the trust’s use of technology.

The Consultant Forensic Psychiatrist has worked in the trust’s secure services for the past two years, and will seek to improve the trust’s electronic patient record to ensure it works effectively for the benefit of patients.

The CCIO role will also extend electronic prescribing across the trust by further improve safety by automatically warning clinicians about a patient’s allergies or any potential issues from combining different drugs, as well as analysing the way data is collected and outcomes monitored so that information can be used to further improve patient care.

Thomas said: “I am looking forward to helping our trust use technology to maximise the time we spend working with our service users. The technology will not replace the kindness and dedicated service we provide, but will hopefully serve to enhance it. In my new role I want to help take the great ideas which staff have on the clinical frontline forward and find ways to share some of the fantastic practice that happens every day throughout our trust.”