Beaumont Hospital, Dublin, has announced the launch of its hospital-wide IT system, Project Coral (iPM and Orbis systems), the culmination of a three-year transformation programme. It states that the system, replacing a 35-year-old legacy system, represents “one of the most significant system upgrades in the hospital’s history”, designed to modernise operations and support future readiness.
Project Coral is a “milestone achievement”, chief executive Anne Coyle said. “The success of the switchover is a testament to the hard work, dedication, and teamwork of everyone involved. We are incredibly proud of what has been accomplished.”
The announcement aligns with the hospital’s strategic plans for 2025 – 2030, published this month, with physical, diagnostic and digital infrastructure listed as a strategic priority. Here, the hospital notes actions to maximise the use of existing infrastructure, and increase its advanced imaging and lab diagnostic capacity. Also, the hospital plans to utilise AI, and focus on its EHR, virtual wards, and the shared care record.
In the next year, aims include enhancing diagnostic image processing and theatre utilisation with the use of AI; by year three taking a leading role in initiatives like virtual wards; and by year five this extends to having interconnected patient health records that are accessible across Beaumont and its partners, and a “comprehensive, modern, and highly functional physical environment for patients and staff”.
Wider trend: Digital systems
For a recent HTN Now session on the topic of EPRs now and in the future, we were joined by digital leaders including Sally Mole, senior digital programme manager – digital portfolio delivery team at The Dudley Group; Keltie Jamieson, CHIO at Bermuda Hospitals Board; and David Newey, digital health expert and executive CDIO. We heard in depth from our panel in terms of their EPR journey, sharing their approach, examples, challenges and lessons learned. We went on to discuss the current position with EPRs, the opportunity, and the current need. Looking ahead, we discussed what the future of EPRs looks like in the short, medium and longer term.
In a separate HTN Now session, we tackled some of the challenges and opportunities around the primary – secondary care interface, with panellists Kath Potts, chief digital officer at University Hospitals Plymouth NHS Trust and Dr Sheikh Mateen Ellahi, GP and practice partner at Elm Tree Surgery and South Stockton Primary Care Network. We also explored interoperability, collaboration between care settings and how digital can ensure patients are directed to the right place at the right time.
The Government of Jersey has published a proposed budget for 2026 – 2029 with £381 million planned for health and care in 2026, representing a £12 million increase in spending planned for digital health and preventative care in the year, totalling £33 million. The Health CIO of the Government of Jersey, Martin Carpenter, cited its commitment to a multi-year programme focused on building a modern and integrated digital health platform that can be accessed by all care sectors, and plans for a unified single patient record “across health and care based on OpenEHR”.
