Electronic Patient Record Systems

Question

What steps his Department is taking to improve electronic patient record systems in the NHS. The Minister will be aware that my hon. Friend the Member for Stafford (Leigh Ingham) and I have been working on a replacement system for the University Hospitals of North Midlands NHS Trust in north Staffordshire, which would improve public and patient experience, and productivity, at those hospitals. Will the Minister meet us so that we can consider how further to unlock that funding to improve productivity and patient experience in good time?

Question

Blocked beds cost Pembury hospital £18,000 every night, yet discharge teams have to manually phone care homes to place people there. My constituent Debbie has created a dashboard—it is basically like Skyscanner—to accelerate discharges by matching discharged patients to care beds. It has already received seed funding of £200,000 from Kent county council, and could save up to £7 million a year in Pembury alone. Will the Minister meet me and Debbie to discuss that idea?

Question

My constituent Lee Armstrong contacted 111 when he was suffering from an Addisonian crisis. Lee and his partner provided full details about his condition to 111, and when his condition worsened, they called 999, but what neither Lee nor his partner knew was that the electronic record details given to 111 would not be available to 999, and neither would his patient records. As a result, the ambulance was not dispatched with the urgency required and Lee died. Will the Minister set out how the improvements in the digitisation of electronic records will cover the integration of the 111 and 999 services so that lives like Lee’s can be saved?

Question

Many GPs say that their buildings are not fit for purpose and lack digital infrastructure. Without fully integrated electronic patient records and better systems, including the electronic prescription service across all hospitals and community trusts, we risk wasting time and money while increasing pressure on frontline staff. Will the Minister outline the steps being taken to full integrate the electronic prescription service across all settings in Dorset?