Pennine NHS Trust Selects EMR Suppliers

The Pennine Acute Hospitals NHS Trust has selected a provider for its electronic patient records (EPR) platform.

Digital tech solutions company Kainos will deliver its Evolve platform in conjunction with data capture services from information management provider EDM Group.

According to Kainos, Pennine’s decision makes it the latest of 21 Trusts to select its product to reach Jeremy Hunt’s paperless NHS proposal.

As Health Secretary, Hunt has challenged health organisations across the country to have abolished paper records in favour of digital alternatives by 2018.

“A vast amount of time, work and energy is spent just moving case notes around. We went to find a solution to help us remove paper case notes completely,” claimed Christine Walters, director of information management and technology (IM&T) at the Trust.

EDM To Scan “Millions” Of Images

To aid Pennine in its paperless goals, EDM says it will be scanning over 100m images in the first year, followed by a sustained scanning programme in subsequent years, to ensure as much paper is removed as possible.

The Group expects that around 450m images will be captured in total over an eight-year period.

Meanwhile, Kainos is intending to make patient records available whenever they are needed, as well as keeping them consistent and up-to-date.

It claims its EMR platform will improve patient safety, access to clinical data, streamline internal processes and deliver cost savings.

“This is one of the largest electronic medical record projects in the UK and one that demonstrates the tangible benefits of what can be achieved quickly and at a large scale,” claimed Nigel Hutchinson, Evolve head at the company.

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