This was
announced last week:
Epic to supply NSW patient record system
Technology
By Amanda
Sheppeard
23
October, 2023
The
worst-kept secret in digital health is finally confirmed with news global
health software giant Epic has signed up to deliver the NSW government’s
promise of a single digital patient record.
The
government’s eHealth NSW department announced late last week that the contracts
had been finalised to form the partnership for the project that will be rolled
out over the next six years.
“The
contract signing marks an important milestone with work now starting on the
initial design and build of this next generation system,” the statement
said.
Epic
will work closely with local health districts, specialty health networks and
other NSW Health organisations, facilitated by eHealth NSW and NSW Health
Pathology.
“Hunter
New England Local Health District (HNELHD) will be the first LHD to go live
with the new platform in 2025,” said eHealth NSW.
“The
sequencing of other local health districts is currently being considered, with
a readiness assessment underway.”
The
single digital patient record (SDPR) will deliver a state of the art, secure
digital record-keeping platform that will transform the digital systems that
NSW Health staff use every day to deliver care, according to the
statement.
“For
the first time, our healthcare teams will have access to an integrated
all-in-one electronic medical record system, patient administration system and
pathology laboratory information system,” said eHealth NSW.
“Having
one statewide system will support consistency and continuity of care for all
patients, while also streamlining the way clinicians work.”
Clinicians
will be able to access a patient’s clinical records quickly, securely, and
safely, regardless of their location. The SDPR will also provide simplified
clinical workflows in an intuitive, user-friendly system with streamlined
technical support.
“Patients
will benefit from a better, more consistent experience no matter where they
seek care,” said eHealth NSW.
“Having
confidence that their healthcare team will have all the relevant information at
their fingertips.”
The
NSW government’s decision to partner with Epic Systems followed a procurement
process that took more than two years and involved over 350 clinical and
technical experts from across the system.
Epic
Systems is a world-leading software company specialising in the design and
delivery of electronic medical records systems and associated
technologies.
Its
software is currently being used in the ACT and in hospitals in Melbourne, as
well as offshore in health services in the UK and the US.
The
SDPR program is working towards the following timeline:
- Finalise contract negotiations:
2023.
- Design and build: 2024–2025.
- Lead site deployment in Hunter New
England LHD: 2025-26
- Statewide rollout in remaining
LHDs/SHNs: 2026–2029/30
- NSW Health Pathology adoption:
2026–2029/30
A
website has been set up to provide more information about
the SDPR program.
The
NSW government yesterday announced the planned overhaul, describing the state’s
current health records system as “complex, cumbersome and outdated”.
“Currently
we have nine systems used for electronic medical records, 10 patient
administration systems and five pathology laboratory information manage systems
in use across NSW Health,” the government said in a statement.
“Currently,
these systems are not connected statewide. Data is routinely collected but is
often unable to be shared or integrated in real time. This can create
duplicative data collection or create information gaps in decision
making.
“As
a result, patients may have to recall and repeat complex medical information
when they’re feeling unwell. Often this is when patients are receiving care at
different locations or from separate treatment teams and impacts the experience
of care they receive.”
New
chief executive of NSW Health Pathology, Vanessa Janissen, told Health Services
Daily a statewide pathology laboratory information management system would a
key component of the single digital patient record (SDPR) and would improve
pathology service delivery.
“A
statewide record keeping system will support consistency and continuity of care
for all patients, including providing enhanced analytics, tools and reporting
to support patient safety, and streamlining ways of working for our public
health professionals,” she said.
More here:
https://www.medicalrepublic.com.au/epic-to-supply-nsw-patient-record-system/101054
In recent
weeks I have been in and around the Health System and have been quite impressed
to see the level of communication and information access available both in and
out of Hospital.
Here we have
the announcement that all this is going to be replaced with an Epic based
system over the next few years. What is not made clear is just why, having got
lots of stuff working, a new transition is required for what must be pretty
incremental gains, and enormous cost.
Here is how NSW
Health sees the problem:
“The Challenge
Clinical information is captured in many different systems across NSW
Health. Currently, healthcare teams must access several platforms to get a
comprehensive patient history. These include various electronic medical record
systems, patient administration systems and laboratory information management
systems. This makes it difficult to quickly access comprehensive information
about a patient.
Some of these systems are also not connected statewide. This means different
care teams must manually request patient information from other local health
districts if a patient is visiting multiple health services. Data is routinely
collected but is often unable to be shared or integrated in real time. This can
create data duplication or information gaps that could affect providing the
best patient care possible.
To solve these challenges, a single source of clinical information is needed.”
The Plan is
outlined here:
“The SDPR program
will transform the digital systems NSW Health staff use every day to deliver
care. All NSW Health care teams, no matter where they work, will securely
access the same information about a patient in real time from one source.
The SDPR will
replace several existing systems that are widely used across NSW Health
services. This includes 228 public hospitals, 600+ community health centres, 60
pathology laboratories and 150+ pathology collection centres. The highly secure
system will house medical, pathology and administration records all in one
place.
The SDPR will be
delivered collaboratively and in partnership with local health districts
(LHDs), specialty health networks (SHNs) and other NSW Health organisations,
facilitated by eHealth NSW and NSW Health Pathology. Input will be sought from
clinicians, consumers, patients and technical experts. Epic Systems, a
world-leading software company specialising in the design and delivery of
electronic medical records systems and associated technologies, has been
contracted to supply the technology platform for the SDPR.
SDPR will first be
available in the Hunter New England LHD, followed by a phased rollout
throughout NSW. The rollout schedule for the SDPR will be planned in
consultation with LHDs, SHNs, and other partners.
The overall
implementation timeline is anticipated to be 6 years (2023-2029/30). This
includes the design and build of the system, and statewide rollout.”
It seems to me this
is a HUGE project that is going to have all areas of NSW in various states of
disruption for the next 6 years (if it goes on time) while all this happens and
at the end of ti we wind up with a single centralised system with all the risks
that brings
I bet the Business
Case of this project is not disclosed but one can be sure it will be costing a
fortune and that one installed it will be moving towards obsolescence! I have
no idea what the disruption that will be caused will cost!
I may be wrong but
this seems just too big and too centralised a project to be sensible! Empire
building on a grand scale!
What do others
think?
David.