Informatics update: May 2008 part 1

Dear all

A few dates for your busy diary:

A meeting to consider innovative ways of supporting RCN nursing communities in developing consensus around standards (especially record content standards) is taking place on 12 June (11 till 1pm in room 107). Dr Derek Hoy will present the work of a project he has led in Scotland -focused mainly on options for supporting clinical involvement in the process of development and maintenance of national standard clinical information tools. Information about this web based approach is available at www.clinicaltemplate.org - there is even a short video! The plan is to work through a use case for getting consensus on an RCN priority topic such as care planning as part of the meeting so we can see how the approach might work for us. If interested and able to attend please contact Anne Casey anne.casey@rcn.org.uk

'Consent & Confidentiality & it's influence on electronic Information Sharing': Beardmore Hotel and Conference Centre, Clydebank, Glasgow., 19 June 2008. Workshop themes will focus around various models of consent which can be supported through the national electronic information sharing framework, eCare and which require validation and reference by practitioners whose work entails elements of multi agency information sharing.

In the news:

Nurses spend more than a million hours a week on paperwork. An increase in paperwork is preventing nurses from spending enough time caring for patients.

Summary care record: early adopter programme: an independent evaluation by University College London. The report provides a number of important learning points, particularly on the question of patient consent to use the Summary Care Record, and the need to retain a clear focus on the purpose and scope of the Summary Care Record as it is implemented.

The National Audit Office (NAO) report on the National Programme for IT in the NHS is available at: www.nao.org.uk/pn/07-08/0708484.htm

NHS Number programme 'reinvigorated' see www.networks.nhs.uk/news.php?nid=2219

Health of Wales Information Service (HOWIS): Map of Medicine available across NHS Wales. Map of Medicine, a clinical pathways tool to help healthcare professionals plan the best possible treatment programmes for Welsh patients, is now available across NHS Wales. www.wales.nhs.uk/newsitem.cfm?contentid=9779

Resources

A new leaflet launched at RCN congress entitled Make IT SAFE (PDF) is now available.

A report of a recent successful RCN/Bournemouth University e-Health workshop (PDF), in Northern Ireland, is now available online.

RCN Strategic Plan 2008 to 2013. Forward together. The new plan defines what is important to the RCN; setting out the organisation’s aims and aspirations, and will be used practically to influence the organisation’s strategic priorities for the next five years. Included here is the aspiration to ‘…be acknowledged as a leader in e-Health.

King’s Fund: Using Information to Promote Healthy Behaviours. This paper looks at the theory and selected evidence of interventions in practice, and what this says about the role of information in behaviour change programmes.

NHS CFH & British Medical Association (BMA): New guidance on protecting electronic patient information (PDF). Outlines the responsibilities that both NHS staff and NHS organisations have in protecting electronic patient information, and includes useful links to further information and guidance.

Information Commissioners Office (ICO): Technical Guidance Notes: Data Protection and Freedom of Information (2008).

NHS CFH: Clinical Connections. Issue 6, Spring 2008 (PDF).

Mobile Clinical Assistant Platform Prototype: Mobile Point-of-Care Technology (White Paper) Salford Royal NHS Foundation Trust, United Kingdom

DH: When to share information: best practice guidance for everyone working in the youth justice system. The guidance is set out in a pathway approach, with best practice case studies used to identify when, what, where and how information needs to be shared to ensure improved outcomes for children and young people, as outlined in Every Child Matters: Change for Children.

Care Services Improvement Partnership (CSIP): Dementia and Telecare Briefing. Aims to provide commissioners, providers and planners with information on telecare services that are available in England to support people with dementia, their carers and their families.

European Commission: Legally eHealth. Putting eHealth in its European Legal Context. Considers the legal issues arising from the use of ICT in healthcare, how these can be addressed in the European Union and their impact on wider public health issues.

Articles of interest:

Bertulis R. (2008) Barriers to accessing evidence based information. Nursing standards 22,36 35-39. Our very own outreach information manager is looking at the literature to find that a lack of IT skills and access affects nurses’ use of research evidence.

BMC Medical Informatics and Decision Making. An integrated strategy of knowledge application for optimal e-health implementation: A multi method study protocol. The study identifies factors which influence the use of scientific evidence and other types of knowledge by decision-makers involved in planning, financing, implementing and evaluating e-health projects.

Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR): Behind the Screen: The hidden life of youth online. This report aims to develop a policy agenda that would allow government, parents, corporates and internet providers to address growing concerns about child safety online.

Journal of General Internal Medicine: Special Issue on Health Information Technology. This American AHRQ-sponsored special issue includes a collection of studies and commentaries that discuss health information technology and its potential to improve medical care.

Journal of Medical Internet Research (JMIR): Randomized Controlled Trial of an Internet-Based Versus Face-to-Face Dyspnea Self-Management Program for Patients With Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease: Pilot Study. This study aimed to test the efficacy of two 6-month dyspnea self-management programs, Internet-based (eDSMP) and face-to-face (fDSMP), on dyspnea with ADL in people living with COPD.

JMIR: An Exploration of Factors Related to Dissemination of and Exposure to Internet-Delivered Behavior Change Interventions Aimed at Adults: A Delphi Study Approach. The aim was to identify potentially important factors that determine whether adults visit an Internet-delivered behaviour change intervention, extend their visit, and revisit the intervention.

JMIR: Assessing Patient Attitudes to Computerized Screening in Primary Care: Psychometric Properties of the Computerized Lifestyle Assessment Scale. This study evaluated the psychometric properties of a 14-item Computerized Lifestyle Assessment Scale (CLAS).

Finally, a BIG well done to our very own Karen Hill whose story forms part of the RCN resource for nurses day 2008

Best wishes

Sharon  Levy  (Mr)
Informatics Adviser
Royal College of Nursing
sharon.levy@rcn.org.uk