London North West University Healthcare NHS Trust and The Hillingdon Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust have signed an agreement with Cerner to implement an integrated electronic health record (EHR).
The partnership was signed in February and will see the two organisations join the Cerner Millennium® EHR domain already in use at the neighbouring Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust and Chelsea and Westminster Hospital NHS Foundation Trust.
This is the first time that four English Trusts have been brought together on one domain in this way. The four organisations comprise a total of 12 facilities and form part of the North West London Integrated Care System (ICS), which covers a population of 2.4 million.
Sharing the same EHR system means health and care professionals across all four acute Trusts in this ICS will have access to an up-to-date and shared view of a patient’s information, irrespective of the treatment venue – enabling the delivery of higher-quality, more coordinated and more informed care across the patch.
Additionally, sharing a single EHR puts the organisations in an ideal position to share expertise, resources and clinical pathways across all 12 facilities, allowing them to enhance their operational and financial efficiencies, and improve user experience for staff working at multiple sites.
The sharing of clinical pathways will bolster collaboration between healthcare providers across the region, helping them re-design and optimise the pathways to reduce unwarranted variation and achieve better patient outcomes.
On the record
Robbie Cline, joint-CIO for London North West University Healthcare and The Hillingdon Hospitals, said:
“This marks an exciting and important step forward in using technology to offer our patients the best possible care.
“We are looking forward to working closely with our clinical teams, our colleagues across northwest London, and our patients as we introduce our new EHR.”
Kevin Jarrold, joint CIO for the North West London Health and Care Partnership ICS, Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust and Chelsea and Westminster Hospital NHS FT, added:
“During the pandemic, we have seen how important it is for acute Trusts to work together to serve the healthcare needs of the population. Having the four northwest London acute Trusts on a single electronic health record system will further strengthen this collaboration, enabling better patient care, improved clinician experience and greater efficiency.”
Distie Profit, managing director for Cerner in the UK:
“We are excited by this ground-breaking collaboration to help improve care quality and efficiency across northwest London.
“The benefits that will come from these four organisations sharing an EHR will put them in an advantageous position to enhance the way care is designed and delivered across the region and brings them one step closer to delivering the collective ambitions of the ICS.”
