PATIENTS and staff in Teignbridge will be able to access health and care information when a new Devon-wide electronic system goes live next month.

Described as one of the biggest changes in healthcare in Devon in a generation, the Epic EPR introduces a modern and trusted digital platform that ensures staff can access patients’ health and care information quickly and securely.

It launches across Torbay and South Devon NHS Trust on April 3.

The system already operates at the Royal Devon University Healthcare Trust and in east and north Devon.

When University Hospitals Plymouth NHS Trust switches on in July, the new shared EPR will create one single electronic patient record system for staff in multiple hospital and community sites across Devon.

For patients, this will mean no matter which hospital they attend in Devon, they don’t have to remember their medical history or repeat the same information to different members of staff, making their care journey more joined-up.

Clinical and administrative teams have jointly designed the shared system to standardise delivery of care across the county.

Digital teams provided the underlying infrastructure and devices to enable staff to support patients across all sites where care is delivered including patients’ homes.

Important information from the ‘legacy’ system will be available in the new system to ensure staff still have access to all the information they need.

Important information from our legacy systems will be available within the new system to ensure that staff still have access to all the information they need.

Professor Adrian Harris, Chief Medical Officer (Digital and Research) for the Royal Devon and Senior Responsible Owner for the One Devon EPR Programme said: ‘This is quite simply one of the biggest changes to health care in Devon in a generation.

‘The introduction of a single EPR across the county will see many benefits for years to come as more comprehensive data, provided in real-time, will support the delivery of improved patient outcomes, higher quality research and advanced service planning.’

The launch of Epic integrates hundreds of systems previously in use across the trust into one single, electronic system, giving staff a complete overview of a person’s medical record and freeing up more time to spend on patient care.

Torbay and South Devon NHS Foundation Trust’s Chief Operating Officer and Deputy Chief Executive Adel Jones said: ‘I am incredibly proud of our teams and our partners who have worked extremely hard to get this fantastic new system live. Over the coming weeks and months, I am confident we will begin to see the full benefits of Epic realised for patients and staff.’

For patients, one of the most exciting parts of the EPR is the new MY CARE patient portal, a new app and online service that puts information about care in the hands of patients.

MY CARE summarises patients’ medical information and interactions with their clinical team into one place. It also allows patients to securely and easily access some elements of their health record, including appointment data, giving them more control over their care.

More information is available at www.torbayandsouthdevon.nhs.uk/services/my-care/.