Connecting more of the Capital’s neighbours to the London Care Record

To support more joined up care for people from outside London who have been referred for treatment and care in the Capital more neighbouring areas will be connected to the London Care Record (11 October 2023).

Work has now begun to link up Oxford University Hospital and providers in Bedfordshire, Luton, Suffolk and North East Essex to the London Care Record so health and care staff working in those areas can view it via their existing electronic record systems.

This will help to ensure that they can see relevant information from the Capital’s health and care providers about the people they are treating and help inform their clinical decision making. Only staff involved in a person’s care are allowed to access the information.

The London Care Record is a single and secure view of a person’s health and care information and includes details about any conditions which a person has, their test results, medicines, allergies, plans for their care and other useful information such as hospital discharge summaries.

It is currently viewed around one and a half million times a month by over 80,000 health and care staff helping to ensure they have the information they need about a person when they need it and supports faster, safer and more effective care across the Capital and beyond.

Extending access to the London Care Record to these areas is important as they have a large number of residents, a significant number of which will be referred for treatment or care in the Capital. In addition Oxford University Hospitals is one of the largest teaching Trusts in the UK providing care through over one million patient contacts each year.

This builds on connections already in place with Hertfordshire and West Essex ICS and Milton Keynes University Hospital where their staff used the London Care Record around 65,000 times in total during August alone.

This also supports wider work being led by NHS England through their ‘Connecting Care Records’ Programme aimed at connecting healthcare provider records across the country to streamline data sharing and improve patient care.

Luke Readman, Director of Digital Transformation at NHS England (London), said:

“It is great that the Capital is leading the way joining up its systems with other areas to support frontline health and care staff provide the best possible care. Over the last two years we have already seen the positive difference this has made in Milton Keynes, Hertfordshire and West Essex. It is exciting that residents in more areas neighbouring London are also set to benefit from more joined up care.”

Mark Thomas, Chief Digital and Information Officer at Bedford, Luton and Milton Keynes ICS, said:

“Making sure that people have the best possible care, especially when they’re at their most vulnerable, is our number one priority. Many residents access care outside of our boundaries and so we’re delighted that Bedfordshire, Luton and Milton Keynes ICS is building on learning from Milton Keynes and joining the whole system up to the London Care Record. This will give health and care staff working in all our communities access to the information they need about a patient to concentrate on caring for the person. We have a proven track record of using digital technology to improve experience in BLMK and we’re excited by this new service.”

Sally Wiltshire, OneLondon Senior Programme Manager, said:

“As the location of a large number of centres of excellence and specialist referral centres, we know that large number of people travel into the Capital to receive treatment and care. Ensuring that their GPs and other staff involved in their care in their local area can see information from London and have a joined up picture of their whole care pathway  is really important. This is already making a difference in Milton Keynes, and Hertfordshire and West Essex, where frontline staff can already view the London Care Record. So it is great news that more of our neighbouring health and care providers will now be connected to the London Care Record and more people can benefit from this joined up care.”