Luca Leone, chief executive of Kahootz, explains that digitalisation should not just be a buzzword, it needs to be realised through action.
From government to private and public industries, organisations are embracing digitalisation, and healthcare should be no different. As the government’s recently unveiled Fit for the Future: 10 Year Health Plan for England indicated, the NHS’ future lies in digital transformation. Prioritising a shift from analogue to digital systems, the 10 Year Health Plan moves to harness the digital revolution and give patients more control over their care, liberating staff “from a burden of bureaucracy”.
In an era of increasing demand on the NHS, digital methods of collaboration are vital to bring the NHS into the modern age.
The days of analogue collaboration and siloed agencies are behind us – modern healthcare demands more. Fragmentation across agencies slows down care and burdens staff with chasing information, taking the focus away from patients. We should embrace digital platforms that connect healthcare providers, harnessing best practices from across healthcare and the wider public sector, to empower professionals and ultimately improve care delivery.
The reality of digital collaboration is simple; by facilitating cross-agency communication across the medical and social care sector, from health agencies to police and government departments, we support patient welfare and practitioner wellbeing, bringing the NHS into the future.
Modernisation of the healthcare system is imperative. The NHS is part of our societal fabric, as are the professionals acting as the first line of care. It is critical that every professional and the patients they treat are supported in the most effective way possible. This is where digital collaboration becomes key.
Sovereign digital security to support society
Digital collaboration within healthcare is not optional. Digital innovation provides opportunities to do away with siloed processes and embrace technologies designed and developed within the UK, for the UK.
One benefit of digital collaboration is record security. Secure digital databases protect patient data while empowering patients. The Futures Collaboration Platform (supported by Kahootz’s software) is supporting the delivery of the Electronic Patient Records (EPR) programme. The roll-out of EPRs will help to streamline data sharing securely, which allows practitioners to spend more time with patients.
Outdated record-keeping and information delivery methods are unsustainable. By moving away from a disjointed approach of paper-based notes and multiple platforms towards a single easy-to-use EPR system, patients can engage in greater partnership with healthcare providers across the country. Patients feel more involved in their care and bureaucratic burdens on staff are minimised by digital EPR delivery. Ensuring that agencies can collaborate and share key patient information through digital platforms gives clinicians a rounded view of patient medical history. The delivery of EPRs through secure collaboration platforms is improving patient care and outcomes while protecting the integrity of sensitive medical histories.
Fixing operational fragmentation
For both patients and the practitioners treating them, time is critical and maximising time spent between the two is crucial for proper diagnosis and treatment. In comparison to analogue methods, digital platforms enable immediate information exchange amongst all involved in care, alleviating pressures created by information gaps and streamlining an increasingly complex treatment environment.
UK health agencies have historically operated using different systems. Futures helps to overcome this fragmentation by connecting thousands of individuals across disparate agencies across the NHS environment and with social care workers and government departments. Futures is changing the way that health and social care staff can succeed by leveraging best practice sharing.
Digital collaboration proved its importance during the COVID-19 pandemic. With Futures in place, the NHS vaccination and screening programme was swiftly established, ensuring that professionals could coordinate on best practice information and programme reports. As one of the NHS’s largest digital rollouts and now the core toolset enabling healthcare reform with over half a million users, Futures proves how crucial it is that practitioners are supported from the ground up. The platform has been further recognised for supporting critical initiatives, including mental health support, domestic violence prevention, and male suicide reduction.
Innovation saves lives
Innovation across healthcare does not just save time, it saves lives. In an era of constant digital change, healthcare cannot lag. Digitalisation should not just be a buzzword; it needs to be realised through action, supporting practitioners who dedicate their lives to helping society. Healthcare professionals must be empowered by modern technological practices. By embracing the benefits of digital collaboration, from record security to inter-agency coordination, only then will the NHS be brought fully into the present.
