Royal Liverpool and Broadgreen University Hospitals NHS Trust has reported clinical and administrative success with CSC’s Clinical Information Portal. The trust completed a proof of concept (PoC) evaluation of the portal as an alternative to paper case notes.
CSC partnered with Carefx Corporation to deploy the portal, which went live on June 10, 2010, with a 60 day evaluation period. Although initially deployed within the hematology and dermatology departments of the trust, the portal was found to be successful in the cardiology and renal departments as well. The trust extended the use of the portal for a further two months due to demand from physicians.
The PoC project managers worked with CSC and NHS Connecting for Health to develop a series of assessment criteria by which results were measured and physician opinions evaluated.
Allowing physicians a single screen view of a patient’s notes, the portal collects information stored in clinical and administrative systems across the trust and provides instant, comprehensive access to a patient’s data. Medical history, treatments, referrals, diagnoses and test results are all available electronically via the portal.
“Just being able to view all critical information about a patient on one screen is a revelation,” stated Professor Patrick Chu, consultant hematologist at the Royal Liverpool and Broadgreen University Hospitals NHS Trust. “The use of portals is clearly the way forward to help increase efficiency, improve treatment and diagnosis and patient safety. It will make the paperless clinic a reality, which is long overdue. I wholly support the wider adoption of this technology so that healthcare professionals are free to concentrate on the care of their patients.”
Physicians are enabled to access the latest data with the portal, ensuring better interaction with patients, as well as more accurate treatment and care. Efficiency and productivity are also improved with use of the portal, as physicians reported a reduction in clinic times by an average of 30 minutes.
The portal also integrates systems from several vendors to ensure interoperability.
“The results speak for themselves and I believe the work with Royal Liverpool University Hospital and Broadgreen Hospital will ultimately benefit other trusts in the NHS. It is clear that portal technology can drive efficiencies and provide a more seamless service for patients,” concluded Andrew Spence, CSC’s UK director of Healthcare Strategy.
