Late, and over budget, the long awaited Electronic Patient Record system is due to go live for staff working at Guernsey and Alderney’s hospitals and the MSG this month.
Starting now, the new EPR is being rolled out across the Princess Elizabeth Hospital, the Oberlands campus, the Castel Hospital, the Mignot Memorial Hospital, and the MSG to “deliver better services to patients” said HSC.
It will replace the current system called TrakCare which the States had agreed to replace in 2021 after it was described as an “urgent need” in 2020.
While HSC promises the EPR will offer a “modern, safer and more efficient way of working to improve patient experience” while also supporting “more coordinated care, giving clinicians faster access to accurate information, reducing paperwork and making it easier for care plans to be updated”, there will be “some short delays to appointments and processing tests over the coming days” while the EPR is bedding in.
HSC warned this could also include longer wait times in the Emergency Department and other “temporary disruption” elsewhere in health care systems.
Deputy Dr George Oswald, President of the Committee for Health & Social Care, said patients should continue to attend appointments as normal during the transition period.
“We are now approaching a significant milestone. While there will inevitably be a period of adjustment, the long-term benefits for patients and staff are clear. We are fully committed to making this transition a success and grateful to the community for their patience and understanding as we move into this new chapter and our staff adjust to the new system.
“This programme is essential to the future of our health and care services. I want to acknowledge the dedication and unwavering commitment of everyone involved in getting us to this point.”
HSC has described the EPR programme as “a significant and complex piece of work, spanning several years”, but Dermot Mullin, Director of Operations for Health & Social Care, and Senior Responsible Officer for the Electronic Patient Record Programme, is confident it will be worth the time and money spent.
“We are nearing the culmination of an enormous collective effort across our services,” he said. “Our teams have been working tirelessly to prepare while continuing to deliver high-quality care. Their professionalism, resilience, and unwavering focus on patient safety have been outstanding.
“The new system will bring meaningful improvements to the way we work. It will reduce duplication, enable faster access to accurate information, and ultimately allow staff to spend more time on what matters most: caring for patients. Although there will naturally be a period of adjustment once the system goes live, the long-term benefits for both service users and staff are significant, and we are excited to be nearing this important milestone.”
The new EPR was due to come in by the end of 2024, but repeated delays have meant it is only now being implemented.
Part of the work involved the upgrading of a separate system, called RiO, for Child Health and Children & Family Community Services in 2025.
The current upgrading will introduce a system called IMS MAXIMS into Acute, Mental Health, and the MSG, and extend the system called RiO into Community and Adult Disability Services.
The delays in bringing these onboard have added to the originally agreed budget, with Phase 1 – the part now going live – costing £300,000 more than it was expected to. That money came from the ‘contingency budget’ which was meant to fund Phase 2 of the project.
Because HSC now doesn’t have the money to fully find Phase 2, it is now looking again at its plans.
When the budget for replacing TrakCare was first discussed in 2020, it was estimated to be set at between £15m and £20m. At that time some States members queried the high price tag – others said they had no choice but to vote for it, because time was running out to replace the existing ageing system.