Two more areas become Local Health and Care Record Exemplars

NHS England has announced two more areas that will become ‘Local Health and Care Record Exemplars’ to put in place an electronic shared local health and care record and improve patient safety.

Through the scheme, doctors and nurses in Yorkshire and Humber and Thames Valley will be able to reduce unnecessary patient tests and improve safety through better working between hospitals, GPs and social care, joining Greater Manchester, Wessex and One London in operating one shared local health and care record.

Receiving up to £7.5 million over two years, the two new regions mean that more than 40 per cent of the population of England will be covered by a shared local health and care record, giving health and care staff better and faster access to vital information about the person in their care, so they can determine the right action as quickly as possible, whether that is urgent tests or a referral to a specialist.

Matthew Swindells, National Director of Operations and Information at NHS England, said: “In the NHS’s 70th year, the local health and care record programme will take the NHS to a world leading position in using information technology to join up services, reduce errors, speed the adoption of new innovations, and give patients control over their own care. The Exemplars will be our trail blazers for that transformation.”

Dr Simon Eccles, Chief Clinical Information Officer for Health and Care, added: “These new local systems will ensure appropriate staff can access information from patient histories to previous test results and care plans that will not only improve the individual care we are able to offer but in some instances could save lives.”