Essex is set to benefit from a new Electronic Patient Record (EPR) system in a £65 million contract award to Oracle Health.
The new system will build on current digital investments to create a single patient record system across hospitals, mental health and community services, delivered by Mid and South Essex Foundation Trust (MSEFT) and Essex Partnership University NHS Foundation Trust (EPUT).
The new system is expected to launch in 2026/27. The goal is to improve how clinicians access patients’ health and care information in real-time and enhance patients’ experiences by not having to re-tell their health or care history whenever they see a health professional.
The new system “will enhance co-ordination and collaboration among clinicians to aid faster decisions that will further improve the care we provide to our patients and their families,” said Zephan Trent, executive lead for strategy and transformation for EPUT and MSEFT.
“This is an ambitious programme that seeks to better connect our hospitals and the community, with a chance to transform the way we manage health for people who use our services”.
Dr Matt Sweeting, executive medical director for Mid and South Essex Integrated Care Board, said patients don’t see borders between NHS organisations, and its digital infrastructure needs to reflect that.
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“The new patient record system will reflect the reality of care across our acute, mental health and community services,” he said. “Along with our approach to shared care records and our commitment to work with all our partners, this will support modern joined-up care across health and care services.”
“By utilising Oracle Health’s EPR, healthcare professionals working in the two Trusts will be able to easily access comprehensive and accurate patient data, allowing them to make more informed decisions and improve patient care,” added Seema Verma, EVP and GM at Oracle Health and Life Sciences.
“On top of this, it will help reduce the amount of time they spend on process and paperwork, enabling them to focus on what matters most – their patients.”
The Trusts are collaborating on the design and implementation of the new system. Mid and South Essex NHS Foundation Trust (MSEFT) is one of the largest Trusts in the country, serving a population of around 1.2 million people.
Essex Partnership University NHS Foundation Trust (EPUT) provides services to more than 100,000 patients at any one time for community health, mental health and learning disability services across Essex, Luton, Bedfordshire and Suffolk
It will service a combined workforce of 23,000 across EPUT and MSEFT for acute, mental health and community services.
