An information sharing platform has been deployed across Dudley months ahead of a planned go live.
The Allscripts dbMotion platform, was due to be deployed this summer, following testing and a proof of concept with local GPs.
To support clinical teams access vital information, The Dudley Group NHS Foundation Trust rolled out the platform during the coronavirus outbreak to ensure information could be accessed when needed.
The project was delivered in 10 weeks and started with making data available that would support healthcare teams treat patients with Covid-19. This included adding medications information from the IT system used by local GPs and data feeds from the trust’s pathology, imaging, and document management systems.
Adam Thomas, chief information officer, The Dudley Group NHS Foundation Trust, said: “We had the dbMotion platform in place, but we really accelerated work during the coronavirus outbreak to support clinical decision making earlier in the patient journey.”
“During a pandemic, it is vital that clinicians have access to the medical history of their patients, so they can triage them effectively and direct them to the right care.”
“Doctors treating Covid-19 patients also need past history, underlying conditions, medicines and allergies to speed treatment decisions. We were able to give them that using dbMotion.”
“Our plan now is to make more use of the dbMotion platform. The NHS is open for business, by sharing the information in dbMotion with clinical teams, we will be able to create care co-ordination packages that will support them in the most appropriate setting, while working towards the aspirations of integrated care set out in the NHS Long Term Plan.
“Moving rapidly to embed dbMotion in our clinical decision making was essential to our emergency response to the coronavirus pandemic, and it has left us in a position to move forward with care co-ordination as we progress into service recovery and working in new ways.”
The Dudley Group went live with Sunrise Acute Care in 2018 and launched its proof of concept for dbMotion with a small number of GP practices at the same time.
Max Hodges, the trust’s chief clinical information officer and an anaesthetist, said: “By accelerating this project, we have not just supported our clinicians during the Covid-19 crisis but improved the quality of information that is available to clinicians to support patient care in the future.”
