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COVID-19 data hub for NHS Wales
A new data hub that keeps track of the NHS Wales response to the COVID-19 pandemic has been launched by the NHS Wales Informatics Service.
It will allow NHS Wales leaders and decision makers to interpret vital data from all health boards and trusts to understand capacity and the demand for care of patients with COVID-19.
Data shown includes GP appointments, Emergency Department capacity, calls to NHS 111, statistics for positive COVID-19 tests, the number and location of beds, and beds with ventilators.
In response to a changing situation the data hub will be constantly developed and upgraded.
Rebecca Cook, Informatics Service Head of Information Design and Standards, said: "This is a new service developed at speed to help in the fight against COVID-19, with the aim of making it easier to understand the impact of this pandemic at local, national and UK levels.
"All the data is held in our secure data warehouse, with the highest standards of data protection."
Individual patient health information is not available in the data hub.
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New system will help improve understanding of COVID-19 at-risk conditions
A number of developments have been made to the Welsh Clinical Portal to support the processing of patient data during the COVID-19 pandemic.
A new form has been added to the Welsh Clinical Portal to enable clinicians to digitally submit the
clinical details of a patient if they
die due to the COVID-19 virus. The digital form,
which does not replace a death certificate, is accessed using the Welsh Clinical Portal login and means clinicians save time as they will no longer be required to telephone Public Health Wales. The
securely collected Mortality Surveillance
data is vital to help
the NHS in Wales manage during this pandemic.
The form has been created on the instruction of Public Health Wales and the Welsh Government to improve daily intelligence and reporting.
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Digital transformation in Primary Care
Over the last few weeks we've been making rapid strides in transforming digital services to support GPs and GP practices. The NHS Wales Video Consulting Service has been deployed to 343 practices, and since its launch, over 3000 patient consultations have taken place.
One patient commented, "It would be great if this service for non-urgent appointments could be routinely available throughout the year".
A GP Remote Desktop Service to support GPs and key staff to be able to work from home has had well over 1000 users set up. Emails at home for GP practices is another vital service we've enabled, giving GPs and practice staff access to their NHS emails whilst on the move or at home. And a new service offering GPs access to the Welsh Clinical Portal is allowing them to view patients' hospital information such as discharge summaries and clinical letters, from any hospital in Wales.
Further information on all of these, and other new digital services is available on our website.
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New digital clinical document to support virtual outpatient consultations
A new digital clinical document has been launched to enable NHS Wales to maintain levels of appointment outcome reporting for outpatient appointments, whilst working remotely. The Outpatient Continuation Sheet has been enhanced in response to COVID-19 and is available for clinicians via the Welsh Clinical Portal, the digital patient record.
The Outpatient Continuation Sheet allows clinicians to record the details of consultations and appointment outcomes. Once completed, this information then forms part of a patient's medical record and is viewable across Wales in both primary and secondary care.
The digital
document offers clinicians the ability to capture notes when working remotely by conducting telephone or video conferencing, or during face to face consultations. It ensures that the appointment outcomes are captured so that patients are not lost in the follow up process and are prioritised appropriately on the waiting list.
Multiple healthcare professionals involved in a patient's care can access and update the document, meaning that all relevant information is captured in one place which is legible and fully auditable.
So far, the Outpatient Continuation Sheet is being used in Swansea Bay and Cwm Taf University Health Boards with 413 created in the first two weeks.
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"I have found the electronic outpatient continuation sheet very useful over the last weeks. It has enabled me to document virtual clinic appointments quickly and securely when telephoning patients away from the hospital. I don't think I'll go back to using the paper version for clinics!"
Dr Owen Pickrell, Consultant Neurologist - Swansea Bay University Health Board
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Microsoft Teams rolled out to NHS Wales
Microsoft Teams has now been rolled out across NHS Wales with almost 16,000 active users already.
Teams allows collaboration and coordination in a simple, secure way with the same security and compliance of Office 365. Online meetings can be conducted with high-quality audio, video and screen sharing.
For training resources, guidance, FAQs and more visit
our website.
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Antibody results to be captured from Point of Care testing
NWIS is supporting the increasing requirement to test for COVID-19 antibodies by facilitating a new antibody point of care result to be electronically captured through national software systems including Welsh Point of Care Testing System and the Welsh Laboratory Information System.
NWIS is implementing electronic transmission of results to ensure the data captured is easily viewable for evaluation and able to be used for Public Health Wales statistics if required. Once the first 100 patients have been tested using the new Point Of Care antibody test, an evaluation will take place to determine the test's performance. If, on review, the test is approved for clinical use, the results will begin to be available for clinicians to view in the Welsh Clinical Portal.
The tests will initially be trialled in A&E in Cardiff and Vale, however if approved will very quickly be rolled out to health boards across Wales.
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Medical images now available to view across health board boundaries
A recent update to the Welsh Clinical Portal, alongside implementation of the Fuji Mobility image viewing software, means secondary care clinicians in Wales can view images across health board boundaries.
Clinicians will be able to access more information about patients and much faster, allowing quicker diagnosis and reduced administration and film-copy transportation costs.
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WCCIS supports information requirements around COVID-19 and its impact in the community
Following the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic, a new national community reporting task and finish group has been established.
The purpose of this group is to develop and capture the data and information requirements around coronavirus for care undertaken by community based services and respond collectively.
The Welsh Community Care Information System (WCCIS) is playing a key role in supporting this work.
The group, which is led by Heidi Morris, NWIS Head of Community Information Services and Mental Health and a key member of WCCIS, meets weekly. It is made up of staff from health boards and local authorities across Wales.
Key achievements to date include;
- the development and implementation of data to identify those persons and households who are self-isolating due to being diagnosed or displaying suspected COVID-19 symptoms.
- the electronic flagging of vulnerable persons within the Welsh Community Care Information System (WCCIS) to assist with the delivery of care packages.
The next steps now are to investigate the feasibility of updating WCCIS with a daily electronic feed of Office of National Statistics (ONS) data about the number of people who have died from coronavirus. This would be helpful for management of community care services to ensure information is up-to-date and resources are used appropriately.
Work will also continue to develop and implement the emerging information requirements for community based services outlined in the recently passed
Coronavirus Act 2020
.
The Act has set out guidance to Local Authorities to ensure the best possible care for people in society during this exceptional time.
Changes to councils' duties under the Care Act will enable them to prioritise people with the greatest care needs and make the best use of the adult social care workforce. You can read more about the Care Act Easement: Guidance for Local Authorities
here
.
The measures in the coronavirus bill are temporary and will be in place for as long as required to respond to the situation.
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