NHS Wales plans to have its Shared Medicines Record (SMR) operational by the end of March this year.
It has included the plan within the first annual review of the Digital Medicines Transformation Portfolio (DMTP), along with those for the development of the Electronic Prescription Service (EPS) for primary care, e-Prescribing and Medicines Administration (ePMA) for hospitals and the NHS Wales App.
The SMR programme is creating a single consolidated record of medicines for every patient in Wales. A technical proof of concept for data sharing was completed in March of last year, a data standard published in November and work has progressed on the processes for relevant information to be shared.
The review says the SMR should be operational within the National Data Resource by the end of March, with medicines and allergies information incorporated from different systems, and that work to align it with other sources will continue through the year.
It says the EPS, meanwhile, will be rolled out in a phased approach, with tests having begun in November and early adopters beginning to use it this month.
Secondary care system
The ePMA for secondary care has been the subject of a pathfinder project at Swansea Bay University Health Board Hospital and research by the Centre for Digital Public Services. Procurements are now in progress at other NHS trusts and health boards, to be followed by implementation over the year.
Work is also continuing on the development of the NHS Wales App, with DMTP saying it should be available for patients to select a preferred pharmacy to receive their digital prescriptions some time this year, and provide access to prescription services within 24 months.
An early version of the app, with a function to order repeat prescriptions and see the prescription history, has been subject to testing with the public since April 2023.
Commenting on the progress of the DMTP, senior responsible owner Professor Hamish Laing said: “Medicines are a vitally important part of healthcare, at some point touching the lives of nearly every person living and working in Wales. Yet the way we manage medicines, largely using paper processes, has not changed significantly since the birth of the NHS in 1948.
“I am confident that the work we are undertaking will have significant impact.”
