Mobile Testing Unit, Photo Credit: Dorset Echo

On the front line tackling COVID-19

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One of our project managers, Kerry Griffin, has for the past 4 months been dividing her time with a front-line role in tackling the Covid-19 pandemic. In our latest blog, Kerry highlights some of the lessons learned from her stint managing Dorset’s Mobile Testing Units.

Earlier this Autumn, I saw an advert for a secondment for a part-time project manager to hit the ground running and manage Dorset’s Mobile Testing Units (MTUs). The role appealed to me as I wanted to do my bit to help support the Council’s Covid work and living in the community I thought I was well-suited to the post.

My role is to provide the logistics for the MTUs across Dorset that carry out PCR tests for people to see if they have Covid. Although the actual tests are run by the NHS, it is up to local government to sort out the facilities. Continue reading “On the front line tackling COVID-19” →

Data for 2021 DCR logins

Facts and stats as the year draws to a close

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In what has been a hugely pressured year for health and care staff, we have been really pleased to see the Dorset Care Record grow in leaps and bounds over the past 12 months.

At the end of last year, there were 2,076 employees from across the Dorset Care Record partnership trained to use our shared care record. As the year closes, this figure has risen to 3,461 – a jump of 1,385. It means that nearly 4 people joined the DCR every day this year. Continue reading “Facts and stats as the year draws to a close” →

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” →

Andy Cowling, Head of Service at Dorset Care Record

Our Review of 2021

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In our final think-piece of the year, Our Head of Service Andy Cowling looks back at the highlights of the past 12 months

Wow! Another year has flown by in the world of the Dorset Care Record (DCR) – or should I say another record breaking year in the world of the Dorset Care Record as we have seen use of the system increase in terms of average daily use from 350 per day to over 1,800 per day!

This growth can largely be attributed to the hard work of our partners in working closely with their clinical colleagues to spread the word. Particular mention should go to University Hospitals Dorset for their major push in increasing their single sign on access this year. We have also enabled single sign on access for GPs and mental health staff at Dorset HealthCare so look forward to hopefully continuing to see our numbers climb throughout 2022. Continue reading “Our Review of 2021” →

Health Service Journal logo

Shared Care Records – Reviewing Progress and Planning Next Steps

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Our Programme Director Astrid Fairclough was part of a Health Service Journal (HSJ) webinar earlier this autumn, that looked at the progress of shared care records and plans for their future

Run in association with Orion Health, Astrid joined a small panel of experts from Doncaster and Derbyshire to consider the progress that has already been made on shared care records and – importantly – where we might go from here.

Convenor Claire Read said what was quickly clear was that, regardless of starting point, there had been consistent advances on shared care records in recent months.

The Dorset Care Record was launched in March 2018 and Astrid Fairclough spoke of how the pandemic had brought about “astronomical increases in use”. Continue reading “Shared Care Records – Reviewing Progress and Planning Next Steps” →

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Open and Transparent – Communications and Engagement at the Dorset Care Record

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Health and social care communications and engagement leads and project managers from around the country were provided with an update this week on communications and engagement work at the Dorset Care Record.

The webinar, the first of a series arranged with Wessex Care Records, is designed to start the establishment of a set of resources for shared care records to utilise as they develop and move to maturity.

Presented by the communications manager Tony McDougal, the webinar looked at how we’ve gone about our stakeholder and partner engagement work, our dealings with media and social media, some of the pitfalls we’ve faced and how we’ve overcome them and what’s next for Dorset.

 

Messages around good communications

Communications and Engagement Webinar – Top Ten Take Home Messages

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Dorset Care Record and its sister organisation Wessex Care Records are establishing a set of resources for shared care records to utilise as they develop and move to maturity.

In the first of the webinars, our Communications and Engagement Manager Tony McDougal – as part of a wider video –   provided a top ten take home messages that hopefully will be useful for communications and engagement specialists and project managers. Continue reading “Communications and Engagement Webinar – Top Ten Take Home Messages” →

DCR October usage stats

Milestone reached: 50,000+ records accessed during October

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For the first time, more than 50,000 patient records were accessed by health and social care professionals during a month.

Figures released today show that more than  52,000 records were accessed during October, continuing the upward trend that has taken place this year.

The introduction of Single Sign On for all partners has contributed significantly to the rise with more than 37,000 records accessed by click-throughs from respective Electronic Patient Records. Portal log-ins have continued to be between 10,000 and 15,000 each month. Continue reading “Milestone reached: 50,000+ records accessed during October” →

Tony McDougal, Communications and Engagement Officer Dorset Care Record

Shared Care Webinar: Communications and Engagement – Coming Soon

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We are working with our sister organisation Wessex Care Records to set up a repository of information in a Learning Zone to help provide support and advice to Shared Care Records (ShCR) across the country.

The Learning Zone will include a range of topics and documents but we are also embarking on a series of webinar sessions that will be available to watch either live or later through our You Tube channel. Continue reading “Shared Care Webinar: Communications and Engagement – Coming Soon” →

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” →