17. Techno care
East Dorset Branch
(MFD) That this meeting of RCN Congress discusses how advances in technology can help to provide safer, timelier and more effective care
Debate report
Kathy Moore, East Dorset Branch, led the matter for discussion calling for nursing staff to embrace technology to enhance and complement practice. Kathy acknowledged current existing resistance but noted the promising initial finds from the Department of Health’s 3 million lives campaign showing lower mortality rates and lengths of hospital stay, and a reduction in the number of home visits. Anita Thompson highlighted the potential for greater monitoring of symptoms and exacerbation of chronic conditions.
Donna Goddard, Nursing in Criminal Justice Services Forum, praised technology for providing “dignified care” and for being a “fantastic opportunity for nursing staff to receive training.” Lisa Cooks, Gloucestershire Branch, complained of the inefficiency of RiO, a system often used in mental health organisations, whereby she is required to go through six to eight screens to arrange an appointment for a patient, and emphasised the importance for systems to be “fit for purpose”.
Claire Picton, Emergency Care Forum, stressed the need for protocols and guidelines for transferring sensitive information to protect patient and staff confidentiality. June Clarke, Swansea Branch, cited the “sad reality” that as far as eHealth in nursing is concerned the UK stands behind other countries, but the government is not prepared to fund the implementation of eHealth systems.
Graham Revie, eHealth Forum, asked Congress to “ensure developments in technology are clinically led” and to “keep the patient at the centre of everything we do”.
Background
The term eHealth encompasses telecare, telemedicine, electronic patient health records, patient informatics, and more. Advances in technology have made it possible for nursing staff to find, use, record, manage and transmit information to support health care, make care decisions and deliver innovative patient care.
Information and communications technology (ICT) pervades our lives, and offers great potential in a health context. Telehealth, for example, supports remote consultation between nurses and patients, and makes remote physiological or environmental monitoring possible.
However, there have been concerns raised by the media in relation to rising costs. For example, in 2011 the government announced the dismantling of the national programme for IT in England and confirmed that for the future the focus would be on local and regional NHS programmes which offer value for money.
In England, responsibility for eHealth is overseen by NHS Connecting for Health, part of the Department of Health’s information directorate. In 2011 the RCN responded to the Liberating the NHS: an information revolution consultation paper (Royal College of Nursing, 2011b) which outlines a strategy putting patients at the heart of the NHS; giving patients control of their health records, improving access to information, and the integration of information from care records.
In Scotland, the government and NHS boards are focusing their second eHealth strategy on the benefits for patients flowing from eHealth enabled service redesign and quality improvements. Led by the Scottish Centre for Telehealth & Telecare, significant progress has been made in the area of telehealth in NHS Scotland.
In Wales, the NHS Wales Informatics Service aims to deliver information and technology for better care, while in Northern Ireland the Information and Communications Strategy of the Department for Health, Social Services and Public Safety (DHSSPS) embraces a wide variety of eHealth developments, including a community information system. In 2009 the RCN published eHealth in Northern Ireland which included many suggestions about how technology could be used in practice, including picture imagery in leg ulcer clinics.
There is a need for ongoing eHealth education and development for all nursing staff to ensure that everyone has the skills to engage and to support patients, and the RCN has produced a wide range of eHealth guidance. An RCN eHealth survey (2010) found that awareness of electronic health records is high and attitudes favourable, and that while there was lower awareness of telehealth, nursing staff were keen to learn more.
The RCN views eHealth as an essential part of nursing practice, highlighting in its 2010 publication, Putting information at the heart of nursing care, (Royal College of Nursing, 2011a) how eHealth can support high quality, safe and effective care. Furthermore, the RCN believes that those designing and commissioning services need to prioritise investment in the most effective and best value services, and that nursing staff and patients need to be engaged in service design and evaluation.
References and further reading
Royal College of Nursing (2010) eHealth survey 2010 report London: RCN Available at: http://www.rcn.org.uk/__data/assets/pdf_file/0005/391109/004115.pdf (Accessed 27/02/12) (Web)
Royal College of Nursing (2011a) Putting information at the heart of nursing care: how IT is revolutionising health care. London: RCN (eHealth Technology in Practice) Available at: http://www.rcn.org.uk/__data/assets/pdf_file/0009/328923/003592.pdf (Accessed 27/02/12) (Web)
Royal College of Nursing (2011b) RCN response to “Liberating the NHS: an information revolution” (England) London: RCN. Available to download (Accessed 27/02/12) (Web)
