Leading the way in digital healthcare innovation

Leeds has been successful in a £1.35m bid to be at the forefront of digital healthcare with an award from the second phase of NHS England’s Integrated Digital Care Technology Fund. The fund has been set up to support the development of digital solutions to help improve services for patients and clinicians.



The bid was submitted by Leeds City Council, on behalf of the city and other integration pioneers across England.



Councillor Lisa Mulherin, Chair of Leeds Health and Wellbeing Board, said:



“Leeds is demonstrating real leadership across health and care. There’s strength and depth of expertise in the city and we’re determined to use this to deliver the best outcomes for people. The Leeds Care Record draws together all the relevant information to enable health professionals to integrate and improve health and care services around the needs of people, to support people to better manage their own health and wellbeing and to be able to make more effective interventions.



“A key part of the Leeds bid was the commitment to work with and support the other pioneers so that different elements of an individual’s care records can be developed together and joined up to bring health and social care IT systems into the 21st century.”



Integrated digital care records allow health and social care staff involved in a person’s care to access the most up to date information about that person to improve the care provided.



The project team in Leeds will work closely with other integration pioneers to share good practice, processes and tools as a growing effort towards an open platform for health and social care. This joint working and support will make sure other areas can have access to best practice and ideas, and by openly sharing the experiences we have duplication can be avoided, and solutions developed quickly and efficiently.



Dr Tony Shannon, the clinical director for the project, said:



“We are really pleased that we have been given the opportunity to be a flagship for digital healthcare as we know these systems can lead to improved decision making, time savings and help staff to interact with a more holistic care record.



“Here in Leeds we have already made great progress in rolling out one example of a digital integrated care record with the development of the Leeds Care Record, underpinned by the Leeds Teaching Hospitals PPM+ platform.



“As a pioneer site, we now have the opportunity to share our learning and collaborate with others to make a real impact on the delivery of health and social care services, not just across the city of Leeds but also across England.”



ENDS



Notes to editors



1. More information about the Leeds Care Record can be found at www.leedscarerecord.org

2. More information about the Integrated Digital Care Technology Fund and the other 24 pioneers can be found at http://www.england.nhs.uk/ourwork/tsd/sst/tech-fund/

3. More information about the Pioneer programme is available at http://www.england.nhs.uk/ourwork/part-rel/transformation-fund/



Members of the Integrated Care Pioneers Programme are demonstrating the use of ambitious and innovative approaches to efficiently deliver integrated care. They are already working across their local health, public health and social care systems, showing how integrated care and transformational change can happen in practice.



On 1 November 2013, fourteen ‘first wave’ pioneer sites were announced. A further wave of eleven Integrated Care Pioneers were announced on 27 January 2015.



Pioneers support the rapid dissemination, promotion and uptake of lessons across the country and receive central support to breaking down these barriers provided by the national partners. The national partners also support the sharing of learning to support all areas in overcoming barriers to integrated care and support at scale and pace, so that it becomes the norm rather than the exception.



Issued by:



Phil Morcom

Communications and Marketing team

Leeds City Council

4th Floor West, Civic Hall, Leeds, LS1 1UR

Mobile: 07891 276270

Fax: 0113 247 4736

www.leeds.gov.uk