News & Blog
Great Feedback From Users of the Shared Care Record
Clinicians, managers and administrators from across health and social care services in South Yorkshire are providing great feedback on using the Yorkshire and Humber Care Record (YHCR).
They are highlighting themes such as saving time for individuals and teams and improving the quality of care and safety for the people they are looking after.
The YHCR, powered by Interweave, brings together people’s separate records into a structured format. This gives health and care professionals directly involved in an individual’s care a more complete view of the care and treatment that an individual has received across all services. The shared care record platform securely connects information from hospitals, GPs, mental health services and social care providers, ensuring professionals have the most up-to-date information when they need it.
Dr Ian Stott, Consultant Nephrologist, Honorary Senior Clinical Lecturer, University of Sheffield, Doncaster and Bassetlaw Department of Renal Medicine, Doncaster Royal Infirmary, says:
“My experience of the Yorkshire and Humber Care Record (YHCR) has been that it has made a real improvement in my work in renal outpatients. We look after patients with long term illnesses in collaboration with primary care and being able to see up-to-date information including medication changes, primary care reviews and blood pressure recordings really helps to provide more joined-up treatment.
“A good example is patients that live in border areas where the GP sends blood samples to a lab in another hospital (for example, Scunthorpe or Mansfield) – historically I had to phone around to get the results but now I can see them in YHCR instantly.”
Emily Ellcome, Administrator at Ashville Medical Practice, Barnsley, says:
“The practice manager and I have had the chance to use [the Yorkshire and Humber Care Record] a few times and it has made life a lot easier for us.
“In one situation, Barnsley Hospital hadn’t sent us a discharge summary from their emergency department for a patient. It took us a few clicks to locate the information of his stay without the need for lengthy holds to the emergency department.
“It’s been useful when patients are calling up asking about future appointments. Some of these can be seen via the timeline tab making information sharing and finding solutions for these queries easier for both us and the hospital departments they attend.
“Being able to see consultant information, follow-up information, and encounters from other providers makes the entire process of continuing patient care easier for all parties involved.
“I’m excited to see more of Yorkshire and the Humber join the Care Record so that we can all work more seamlessly together to provide amazing patient care without the need for unnecessary hold times between departments.”
Jill Wetherall, service manager of Sheffield City Council Multi-Agency Safeguarding Hub (MASH), says:
“The shared care record gives a holistic view of the partners involved in the adult’s care and wellbeing. Timely access to this information enables us to implement an immediate protection plan with the professionals involved, to promote the adult’s safety. The South Yorkshire Shared Care Record (SYSCR) programme champions excellent partnership working, which enhances safeguarding. Improved communication leads to better outcomes for the adults we serve.”
The YHCR is being rolled out via the SYSCR Programme, part of the national Connecting Care Records initiative. Currently, there are 13 local NHS organisations and local authorities, as well as all GP practices, involved in advancing the programme in South Yorkshire, across the Barnsley, Doncaster, Rotherham and Sheffield areas.