By the end of March 2016 Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust will be operating on digital patient health records and digital medications management using its Cerner IT system. This will be a big step towards the goal of paperless health records.
The approach has been piloted in gynaecology and elderly care at St Mary’s Hospital with good feedback from both staff and patients. It will now be rolled out site by site with St Mary’s complete by November, Hammersmith and Queen Charlotte’s by February, and Charing Cross and Western Eye by March 2016.
Experience from the pilots shows that classroom training is useful but people really learn a new IT system when they start using it in their working environment. Champions will have classroom training and other clinical staff will attend face-to-face demonstrations focusing on how the change will affect their work. They will then be supported at go-live by champions and floorwalkers.
For more information, contact Paul Harrison, Cerner Communications Manager.