NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde has made good progress on its programme of digital improvements with 154 projects now underway across 12 key areas.
The Digital On Demand plan, which covers the period from 2023 to 2028, sets out how the health board will use technology to transform services and support patients and staff.
It was developed through extensive engagement with staff and members of the public and aims to make digital tools as accessible as possible.
Highlights so far include the rollout of remote blood pressure monitoring in primary care, with 59% of GP practices now using this with over 6,000 patients enrolled.
A new digital pathway for dermatology services launched in December and January and is being adopted by GP practices.
A multidisciplinary team (MDT) app for cancer care has been developed and is live in three specialties and being further implemented in MDT meetings for pancreatic, liver, bile duct and gall bladder cancers.
NHSGGC now has 53 digital toolkits live on the national Right Decisions app. The platform is a single source of digital tools that enable people to make safe decisions quickly based on validated evidence.
Through the West of Scotland Innovation Hub, NHSGGC has also been trialling and evaluating the use of Artificial Intelligence in chest X-rays and head CT scans to develop evidence-based cases for long term implementations.
A Trauma App co-developed through the Hub that automates reporting and frees up clinicians’ time by reducing the amount of paperwork they have to do is now embedded in the Major Trauma Service.
Meanwhile, the vCreate platform which allows healthcare teams to use videos, photos and data for remote care, diagnostics and family engagement is also operational.
Nursing Digital Clinical Notes are being adopted across the Institute of Neurological Sciences and at Gartnavel General Hospital, moving away from a paper-based system.
A new digital appointment notification system – Patient Hub – is being rolled out to acute specialties over the next 20 months.
Patient Hub has been piloted in Neurology and the Ear Nose and Throat service, with more than 70% of patients accessing their outpatient appointment information and pre-operative assessments digitally.
Across all services, NHSGGC has been promoting the benefits of virtual consultations to patients and staff as it seeks to increase the use of these.
The Digital Strategy’s vision is for “citizens to access and contribute to their own health record online”.
It adds: “This will be accompanied where appropriate by a transition from traditional face-to-face interactions.
“This will offer a more integrated digital experience for citizens and care providers, while maintaining alternatives for people without digital access or confidence.”
At today’s meeting of NHSGGC’s Board, an annual update on the delivery of the Digital Strategy was presented to members by Denise Brown, Director of Digital Services.
She said: “This is the second annual report on our Digital Strategy and it shows good progress as we continue to increase our use of technology to transform services for patients and staff.
“We are doing a huge amount of work across a range of different areas to maximise the benefits of the adoption of technology and digital services.
“This includes evaluating the use of AI algorithms in diagnostics, and the use of digital platforms and remote devices in the management of conditions, as well as freeing up clinicians by moving away from time-consuming paper-based systems.
“Our vision is to deliver the best care possible by connecting patients and staff, and there has been a significant amount of engagement carried out during the development and delivery processes of this strategy.”
You can read the full Board Paper here.
