Case Studies

Mary Brinsdon, UHD cancer nurse specialist

Patient allergy and medical history information useful for University Hospitals Dorset cancer nurse specialist

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Lead Gynaecology Cancer Nurse Specialist Mary Brinsdon has become a keen user of the Dorset Care Record in recent months, using the shared care record nearly 500 times during May.

Mary, who has been a gynaecology and oncology clinical nurse specialist at University Hospitals Dorset for the past eight and a half years, found out about the shared care record from colleagues. Continue reading “Patient allergy and medical history information useful for University Hospitals Dorset cancer nurse specialist” →

Dorset HealthCare were awarded "Outstanding" in the latest CQC accreditation

How our shared record is helping teams involved with hospital discharges

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During the Covid pandemic many staff were redeployed into the Single Point of Access (SPA) team – the Transfer of Care Hub for Dorset. They have been involved in transferring patients from one setting to another to ensure consistent continuity of care.

The SPA is a remote service, which operates 7 days a week from 8am until 6pm. Its remit is to work with partners across the Integrated Care System, including our acute hospitals and social services. It uses the Discharge to Assess pathways to support hospital discharges, thereby increasing patient flow. Continue reading “How our shared record is helping teams involved with hospital discharges” →

Jayne Catley, DCR Business Analyst

The Agony and the Ecstasy – Benefits

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In our latest think-piece project business analyst Jayne Catley argues that if “you’re not measuring it, you can’t manage it.”

Our Programme Management Office have been working on managing benefits for many months and I’ve provided a brief look at how we’ve gone about it.

Firstly, it’s important to ask what is a benefit and why do we need to identify benefits? A benefit should represent an improvement resulting from an action. Any project should have a good reason for existing in the first place. Otherwise, why do it? Continue reading “The Agony and the Ecstasy – Benefits” →

Mental Capacity Act - Dorset Council decision tree

Mental Capacity Act and the Dorset Care Record – A user’s view

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Catherine is an administrative assistant in the Mental Capacity Act (MCA) team. Using the Dorset Care Record is now an integral part of the role to ensure data is clean and up to date.

For each referral received Catherine and the team check whether patients receiving treatment in the County’s hospitals (and care homes) are from the Dorset Council, Bournemouth Christchurch and Poole (BCP) local authority areas or whether they are out of area.

To do this the person’s ordinary residence needs to be established.  However, sometimes addresses are listed as specific hospital wards (rather than the persons home address). So, Catherine uses the DCR to get further demographic information about the patient. This saves time for both the hospitals and the team. Continue reading “Mental Capacity Act and the Dorset Care Record – A user’s view” →

Adults safeguarding DC

How our shared care record is used by adult safeguarding triage workers

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Gina Orgec completed the DCR training some years ago while working in the adult social work team at Dorset County Hospital.

However, it hasn’t been until recently that she has started using the shared care record more regularly in her current role as an adult safeguarding triage worker for Dorset Council.

“I use it really to check people to see if they have seen their doctor, to get an update on their health needs, and whether they are in hospital. Continue reading “How our shared care record is used by adult safeguarding triage workers” →

DHC staff - generic photo

Using the Dorset Care Record to enhance the triage of referrals

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In our latest case study, Dorset HealthCare Community Mental Health Nurse Angela Jones talks about how her team use the Dorset Care Record

I work as a Community Mental Health Nurse within a Community Mental Health Team and we support people over the age of 65 who have mental health problems such as dementia, depression, anxiety and schizophrenia.

Most of the referrals to our team come via Primary Care and this is where having access to the Dorset Care Record (DCR) has had the most positive impact on the team’s working practice. In order to process these referrals in a timely manner, DCR allows us to obtain accurate, up to date information from the patient’s health records. Continue reading “Using the Dorset Care Record to enhance the triage of referrals” →

A Clinical Coder in the NHS at work

Clinical Coders – How they use the Dorset Care Record

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Clinical coding is the process of transforming the information about diseases or procedures recorded in the health records into numeric or alphanumeric codes, in order to categorise health record information.

It allows for reliable collation, aggregation and comparison of healthcare data on local and national platforms. As well as being useful for auditing purposes, it is used for tracking patients outcomes and measuring treatment effectiveness. 

And increasingly clinical coders are using our Dorset Care Record to help them, particularly across Dorset’s acute hospitals. Continue reading “Clinical Coders – How they use the Dorset Care Record” →

Crystal Dennis, digital lead for Dorset CCG

How myDCR will empower patients

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Operational lead for public facing digital access at home Crystal Dennis believes myDCR heralds a new era for patient empowerment

“Most people have access to smartphone technology – be it through a mobile, a tablet, a laptop or through a desktop device.

“So we need to make really good use of these type of technologies and be able to put a digital health passport into the hands of our population so that they can contribute to their records and so that we can access services in a different way. Continue reading “How myDCR will empower patients” →

Jane Flynn, UHD lead rheumatology practitioner

Rheumatology and myDCR – A Clinician’s perspective

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Jane Flynn is a lead rheumatology practitioner at University Hospitals Dorset. In this case study she highlights her work and how myDCR will make a difference to people’s lives

“In the rheumatology department we treat patients with inflammatory arthritis and the myDCR allows photos to be uploaded. For example, an inflamed joint or a rash. This can be shared within the team and with other specialities. It can be monitored over time and we can see changes in your care and modify your treatment because of these.

“The goals section will be able to monitor weight and blood pressure and this will be visible to all professionals. As part of patients ongoing care, we recommend they weight themselves and take their blood pressure. Continue reading “Rheumatology and myDCR – A Clinician’s perspective” →

Annemieke Fox, UHD MND advanced healthcare practitioner

How myDCR will help those suffering from Motor Neuron Disease

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Advanced healthcare practitioner coordinator Annemieke Fox’s role at University Hospitals Dorset is to support people with Motor Neuron Disease. Here she talks about her role and how myDCR will benefit clinicians and patients

“My job is to support people with Motor Neuron Disease (MND) and their families from diagnosis  throughout their journey.

“I’m currently using the Dorset Care Record to access information about patients from their community healthcare professionals, which I wouldn’t normally have access to through the hospital records.

“People with MND often have varying levels of disability, which might make accessing their myDCR challenging for them. Continue reading “How myDCR will help those suffering from Motor Neuron Disease” →