Agenda item

Stuart Lea, CIO/Digital Programme Director, Together We’re Better STP

Dr Ruth Chambers OBE, STP Clinical Lead for Technology Enabled Care Services Programme

The Board received a presentation from Dr Paddy Hannigan (Board Member), Stuart Lea Director of the Digital Programme and Dr Ruth Chambers, Clinical lead for Staffordshire STP’s technology enabled care services (TECS) programme, digital workstream board. The presentation outlined the digital vision and key deliverables of the Digital programme and noted the vision set out in both the Director of Public Health’s Annual Report and the NHS’s Long Term Plan, which included over 50 digital commitments.

There had been a technological revolution which had significantly changed relationships between the individual and organisations, for example retail banking, retail distribution, telecoms etc. There was an opportunity for health to develop similarly, changing their relationships with the patient and fostering a more proactive, bespoke, digitalised service.

The STP’s digital programme had 14 delivery workstreams:

1.    Citizen Health and Care Gateway – to provide a single point of access into all digitally enabled health and care services regardless of who provided them;

2.    Digital Citizen Communication – creating a series of pro-active digital engagement channels with citizens ranging from appointment reminders to 2-way personalised communication;

3.    Assistive Technology – implement a range of assistive technologies aimed at keeping people in their homes for longer, improving quality of life and preventing illness;

4.    Personal Health and Care Records – ensuring citizen’s health and care information was readily accessible to them and, where appropriate, they could record their own health and care information;

5.    Paperless by 2024 – remove all paper records for all partner organisations and ensure that all health and care information was recorded electronically;

6.    Intelligent Digital Healthcare – digitally augment and improve how health and care would be delivered and managed by identifying and implementing the latest digital tools and techniques into health and care settings;

7.    Integrated Care Records – develop and implement a solution to amalgamate health and care information into a single repository to improve the delivery;

8.    Population Health Management (PHM) – evaluate a range of current PHM pilots and implement a PHM toolkit to amalgamate health and care information into a single repository;

9.    Common Standards – ensure digital is a key enabler of change and delivers comparable, high quality information by adopting and embedding consistency and standardisation of digital tools and technologies;

10.Infrastructure and Service Modernisation – design and create modern infrastructure and supporting services to allow simple, assured and portable access for all required users;

11.Back-office Digitalisation – identifying and implementing opportunities for digital efficiencies;

12.Digital Innovation – create and foster a culture of digital innovation, engaging the wider workforce and stakeholders in this;

13.Digital Leadership and Capability – develop the digital capability of staff and citizens whilst improving the wider leadership capability;

14.Communication and Engagement – integrated planning and approach to communications and engagement.

Most of the digital programme was not funded and therefore there was a need to prioritise deliverables, define the business case and seek funding sources or alternative approaches to delivery.

Progress had been made with Integrated Care Records. A system had been procured and agreements were in place with all STP partners to share data, with the information sharing gateway being implemented and information sharing agreements currently being formally signed. Test data messages were complete between most partners and the integrated care record and training material had been developed. It was anticipated the system would go live from April 2020 onwards. The new system allowed a more pro-active approach, highlighting opportunities to address issues directly with patients rather than through their GP, and allowing patients to see parts of and contribute to their own care records. This enabled personalisation and proactively looked at how care data could improve an individual’s care, highlighting a range of possible services to improve the individual’s health and wellbeing. The new system also removed some variables from the current approach and enabled a more consistent application of care and support.

On considering the implementation of Technology Enabled Care (TEC) in Primary Care across Staffordshire, the Board looked at modes of TEC currently used by Practices. This included technologies such as AliveCor Screening used to screen patients with Atrial Fibrillation (AF). Comparisons of the type to TEC used in 19 practices after 24 general practice nurses had participated in the digital upskilling programme showed a significant increase in number and types of TEC used. Benefits varied according to the practice and their adoption of TEC modes. However, currently, of the 151 General Practices across Staffordshire:

·         108 were using facebook;

·         21 were undertaking video-consultations;

·         28 used interactive Flo telehealth;

·         At least 41 were promoting apps;

·         113 used AliveCor for AF screening; and

·         23 undertook online clinical consultation triage.

Leadership was instrumental in ensuring the digital agenda was followed and therefore highlighting successful outcomes and benefits of digitalisation was important in promoting its value. Successful examples were shared around: breast screening videos on facebook pages to increase take-up; video consultation with northern care homes enabling half a day per week to be reallocated for face to face consultations; use of electronic stethoscopes; use of Alexa; diabetes diagnosis; and 14 day halters to gather data and help diagnosis.

Promoting the digital agenda included a Radio 4 interview and printed drinks coasters used in Weatherspoon pubs with GR codes that explained how to take a pulse. Whilst communication and promotion was important, if the new technologies were well designed, interactive and useful it was suggested they would sell themselves. Sharing success stories and evidencing outcomes would also help to promote their use.

Although it was necessary to accept that a small proportion of the population would not have access to, or the desire to use digital technologies, this should not drive policy. Whilst this group should not be forgotten they should not be the impetus that stalls digital progress.

RESOLVED – That the presentation be noted and Members champion the STP Digital Programme within their own organisations.