New arrival becomes first ever patient in Northern Ireland to be born with a full digital health record

ON Wednesday afternoon, a new baby at the Ulster Hospital made history as the first ever patient to be born in Northern Ireland with a full digital health record.

Baby Nylah was born just hours before the South Eastern Trust launched a major overhaul of patient records, transferring them from paper to digital.

After seven years of intensive preparations, the new 'encompass' system officially went live at 4am in the Ulster Hospital, in what the trust called a  “historic” moment.

The system will now be rolled out to other Trusts in Northern Ireland over the next 18-24 months, starting with the Belfast Trust and followed by the Northern, Western and Southern Trusts.

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A major effort across all parts of the Health and Social Care system, the long list of people and professions helping to develop the system has included doctors, nurses, pharmacists, social workers, allied health professionals, procurement teams, legal and IT professionals, trainers and patients.

The new system was implemented by the tech company Epic, which currently provide electronic records for 300 million people both within the UK and around the world.

Roisin Coulter, Chief Executive of the South Eastern Trust, asked for patience over the coming weeks as staff adjust, but said it would be a huge improvement.

“I am so proud of our staff, other staff from across the health service and the entire team involved in this programme who have been working tirelessly together in order to implement this digital innovation,” she said.

“It will, of course, be a time of change and adjustment for our staff as they get used to the system, so we are asking the public to be patient for the next few weeks.

 “There will inevitably be some disruption in our Trust but every effort will be made to keep this to a minimum.  The long-term benefits for our patients and service users, who are at the heart of everything we do, are enormous."

The Department of Health’s Permanent Secretary Peter May added: “The launch of encompass signals a new era for health and social care services and is part of the Department’s transformation strategy. 

“It is much more than updating to a new system, it means that for the first time ever all patient information will be held in one place. Patients will not need to repeat their information to staff at every appointment, creating a better experience for patients and service users.”

He added that the new system would also better protect patients’privacy. 

“Paper records will be a thing of the past, ensuring information can be accessed wherever it is needed. Information will be more readily available to plan services and prevent health issues at the population level.”

The process will also be simplified for staff, allowing them to get the right information instantly and will help to reduce duplication of services like tests and reducing the risk of errors.

In time, everyone in Northern Ireland will also be able to install a ‘MyCare’ app on their phone, allowing them to access their own patient records as well as information about appointments and test results. 

Mr May continued: “Today is the culmination of a lot of hard work from teams right across the system, so I would like to thank all those involved in this launch and also recognise the work that is ongoing to ensure the successful rollout of encompass across all our Health and Social Care Trusts.”