The London Ambulance Service has begun a pilot to enable its clinicians to securely access Summary Care Record (SCR) data on an iPad.
It makes use of the Mobile SCRa application and the new NHS Identity Service for authentication.
NHS Digital, which developed the service, said it removes the need for a smartcard or the N3 broadband network in accessing the SCR.
It has also developed the pilot, which will use Camden Ambulance Station as an initial user base and involve around 60 medics having access to patient records and additional information on iPads. The Mobile SCRa system provides access to the patient record through 4G and Wi-Fi networks.
The pilot is set to last for 16 weeks and will provide project teams with feedback on the service and the performance of the iPads to feed into further product development.
The SCR provides vital information about a patient’s medical history such as details of long-term conditions, significant medical history, ongoing prescriptions, known allergies and any other specific needs.
Real world implementation
Mike Walker, the programme head responsible for NHS Identity and Mobile SCRa at NHS Digital, said: "This mobile solution has been implemented very quickly in a real world environment, providing meaningful insight that will inform future direction. I am extremely proud of the team. They have worked hard to get this capability built, enabled and deployed.
“We hope to see that this brings real benefits to the working day of medics and A&E staff and, most importantly, to patients.”
Stuart Crichton, chief clinical information officer at London Ambulance Service, said that iPad access to the SCR should help ambulance crews provide better informed care.
This is the latest step in showing the SCR can be available anywhere through a mobile device and follows an NHS Identity Service pilot last year in which organisations shared information through the Data Landing Portal.
Following the Camden pilot, the aim is to roll out the initiative to all frontline London Ambulance clinicians.
Next steps for the project are to increase functionality on the Mobile SCRa product and availability to other devices running on Android and Windows operating systems.
The project teams are also looking to pilot with different care settings.
Image by Lee Haywood, CC BY SA 2.0 through flickr
