What is the Hertfordshire & West Essex Shared Care Record?
The Hertfordshire and West Essex Shared Care Record joins up information from multiple record systems across health and social care to create an up-to-date, read-only summary about the people you are providing care for. This makes it easier for services to work together; saves time; and supports safer, more effective care.
The technology that creates the Shared Care Record is the Cerner Health Information Exchange (shortened to HIE).
The Shared Care Record is a summary view of selected information and is not an individual’s full health and care record. Please see the Shared Care Record data sets for a current list of the information available from partners in Hertfordshire and west Essex.
Please see our collection of user experience videos to hear how health and care professionals and the people they care for are benefitting from the Shared Care Record.
The information available is invaluable in terms of getting the correct treatment plan. We get a picture from multiple providers of the patient’s journey leading up to when they come to hospital. It’s all about patient safety and continuity of care.”
Lead Frailty Pharmacist, The Princess Alexandra Hospital NHS Trust
What are the key points for correct use of the Shared Care Record?
- Secure sharing of information between health and care services is an essential component of safe and effective care. In line with UK GDPR, the Shared Care Record can be used for individuals you are directly providing care to. A full audit trail of access is maintained.
- It is important to be transparent and inform individuals that you are accessing their record from another service whenever possible. We use the My Care Record website and other communication materials to let the public know how we use information to improve their care.
- The Shared Care Record does not notify users of new information or replace any current methods of communication between services. For example, hospital results and letters will continue to be sent to an individual’s GP. Responsibility for delivering results outcomes and treatment decisions remains with the professional who ordered an investigation.
- The Shared Care Record displays information in sections. It is important to be aware that each section is not a complete list of information. The same type of information, for example medications, from different sources may be displayed in more than one place within the Shared Care Record.
- The Shared Care Record is not the full record. Users should verify information wherever possible and continue to use their judgement knowing it is likely that they do not have access to all relevant information for a patient/service user.
How do I access the Shared Care Record? / Do I need a password?
The Shared Care Record will be available within your own clinical system when you open the record for a person in your care. There is no need for a separate logon or to search again for a patient/service user’s record. The technology used to create the Shared Care Record is the Cerner Health Information Exchange (HIE). Depending on your record system, the Shared Care Record may be labelled differently. For example, as ‘HIE’ or ‘Portal Cerner New HI’.
You do not need a separate password for the Shared Care record.
Who can access the Shared Care Record / Can the public use the Shared Care Record to view their own information?
Access to the Shared Care Record will be based on the existing role-based access rights of each organisation. This means that if you have access to health/care information about an individual within your existing record system, you will have access to their information via the Shared Care Record. So, for example, GPs will be able to see the Shared Care Record for patients registered at their practice.
The Shared Care Record is not a patient portal. It does not allow patients/service users to access their own information.
Can other users change information within our records/system?
No. The Shared Care Record is read-only. All users will continue to use their organisation’s clinical record systems to record information.
How is information kept secure within the Shared Care Record?
The Shared Care Record can only be opened through the secure record systems already in place in each organisation via secure networks.
Only users who already have access rights to view a patient/service user record as part of their role in their own organisation will be able to see the Shared Care Record for an individual. Organisations are bound by NHS regulations including records access and Data Security Protection Toolkit (DSPT) protocols, in providing that access to clinical records.
As with your existing record system, regular audits will be carried out to check that access is being used appropriately with a legitimate relationship and active reason.
How up to date is the information available?
In most cases, data is relayed to the Shared Care Record directly from the original record and up-to-date information is instantly available. The information is refreshed each time you re-open the record.
For technical reasons, some record systems cannot connect directly and will regularly send information to the Shared Care Record instead. In our area, information from Herts Urgent Care (HUC) who provide Out of Hours care will provide information to the Shared Care Record twice every 24 hours.
What happens if someone wants to object to their information being shared?
It may be helpful to reassure patients/service users that information in the Shared Care Record will only be used by health and care professionals directly involved in their care. Information can only be accessed via a secure network to support the delivery of their care. More information for the public, including answers to frequently asked questions can be found on the My Care Record website.
Individuals can choose to object to their information being shared for direct care.
Please note:
- It is important to make sure that individuals understand that not providing access to their records may affect the care they receive. In many situations, information needs to be shared between services in order to deliver care. However, it may be possible to arrange for specific or sensitive information not to be made available.
- There may also be some situations where information still needs to be shared. For example, if there is a serious concern about an individual’s safety.
- If they do wish to object, individuals should be advised to contact the person providing care to them at each organisation who holds records about their care. Each organisation will have their own process to manage objections.
Please contact your organisation’s Data Protection Officer (DPO) if you require more information about how to handle objections locally.
Can I print/transfer information from the Shared Care Record?
There is no print facility within the Shared Care Record. You should not print or take screen shots as this creates risks around data security, record duplication and out-of-date information being used.
The ownership of data remains with the organisation who contributed the data to the Shared Care Record. If you need a copy of a report or result that has not been sent to your organisation directly, you will need to contact the organisation the information orignated from to request a copy.
You may wish to reference information from the Shared Care Record within your records, for example, results that have been part of your decision-making process. For example: XX blood test completed at Royal Free Hospital, 15/04/22, shows normal range, viewed on Shared Care Record 23/08/22.
What should I do if the Shared Care Record isn’t working, or I can’t see the information I was expecting?
Please contact your normal IT service helpdesk if you experience any technical problems with the Shared Care Record.
If less information is available than you are expecting to see, please check that you have reset any filters. It is also advisable to check the Shared Care Record data sets, as not all organisations are able to share the same amount of information. Some organisations may only be sharing information from a certain date.
What is the difference between the Shared Care Record, My Care Record and the Summary Care Record?
The Summary Care Record (+ additional information)
- Shares a limited set of coded information from GP records only
- Covers all of England
- Predominantly to support urgent care
- Only viewed by health and care professionals with appropriate access
- Uses the NHS SPINE technology
- Accessed via the National Care Records Service which also has other information sharing elements such as Child Protection Information Sharing (CP-IS)
- User guidance on NCRS and the services available can be found here: https://digital.nhs.uk/services/national-care-records-service/user-guidance
The Hertfordshire and West Essex Shared Care Record
- Shares data from multiple health and social care organisations, including GP coded information
- Covers Hertfordshire and West Essex and some neighbouring areas including London
- To support the delivery of direct care to individuals in Hertfordshire and west Essex
- Only viewed by health and care professionals with appropriate access
- Uses Oracle Cerner Health Information Exchange (HIE) technology
- Opened from within each organisations existing record system, for example SystmOne/EMIS for GP practices, hospices and community, hospital EPR systems
- Information to support users is held on these pages of the ICS website.
My Care Record
- My Care Record isn’t a system, it is an approach which supports providers to share information for direct care
- Covers five ICS areas across the East of England including Hertfordshire and West Essex
- Ensures organisations are meeting required standards, in line with UK GDPR and working together to share information appropriately
- Provides a single Information Sharing Agreement between the organisations involved and tools to communicate with the public
- Covers different types of technology including Shared Care Records
- See mycarerecord.org.uk for more information
How does the Shared Care Record relate to opt-outs for data sharing?
The Shared Care Record is for direct care and will not be used for planning or research purposes. Therefore, opt-outs received for national data programmes such as the recently highlighted General Practice Data for Planning and Research (GP DPR) do not apply to the Hertfordshire and West Essex Shared Care Record.
Objections to sharing for direct care are recorded in GP clinical systems separately to opt-outs for national secondary use. If you have questions about recording patient preferences on your clinical system, please speak to your IT service provider.
What are the audit requirements for the Shared Care Record?
The Hertfordshire and West Essex Shared Care Record does not change existing record access audit requirements but should be built into your organisation/practices current audit processes as an additional step where necessary.
As outlined in the My Care Record Information Sharing Agreement signed by all partner organisations, access to records should be audited in line with the standards provided by the NHS Data Security and Protection Toolkit (DSPT).
All requests for audit reports on access to the Hertfordshire and West Essex Shared Care Record will be managed by your organisation/practice’s Data Protection Officer (DPO). Please inform your DPO of your requirements and they will request a report on your behalf.
If you have concerns about that a record has been accessed inappropriately or receive a request from a patient/service user (Subject Access Request), you may also request a specific report by exception from your DPO who will help to investigate the concern.
Access reports can be run against:
- Patient/service user – details of all users who have accessed the record of a patient/service user in a given timeframe.
- Named staff member(s) – details of all records viewed by the particular user(s) in a given timeframe.
Where can I find information from out of hours/111 providers in the Shared Care Record?
Information from out of hours providers is currently provided as a document within the ‘Miscellaneous Reports’ section of the Shared Care Record. In Hertfordshire and west Essex, out of hours and NHS 111 services are provided by Herts Urgent Care (HUC).
If an individual makes a call to NHS 111 and requires advice from a clinician, this information will be provided within the Shared Care Record as an out of hours record. If the call does not result in advice from a clinician, it will not show within the Shared Care Record.