Date: 08/03/2010
The Summary Care Record (SCR) programme intends to improve the quality and safety of patient care through better management of health records.
At the moment every patient has separate records kept about them wherever they have received treatment. Information from these records can be shared, but only on request via letter, email, fax or phone. At times this can be slow and there is a risk that information can be lost along the way. SCRs will give healthcare professionals faster and easier access to reliable information.
The summary care record (SCR) is an electronic summary of key health information. It will hold limited essential information derived initially from the patient's GP record. This will include medication, adverse reactions and allergies. In the future, every time a patient receives care, significant medical information may be added to the SCR.
The full implementation of the SCR programme has benefits for patients as well as healthcare professionals. Some of these benefits are immediate whilst some will be realised in the future.
Benefits for Patients
• You will not have to remember all your medication and allergy information because it will already be stored in your SCR. This means that you and your healthcare provider can be confident that the information is accurate and up-to-date.
• Your summary care records are held in a central location and are available to all healthcare professionals, in England, involved in your care. If you are away from home or need treatment out of hours or in an emergency, the staff treating you will have access to your summary care record. This means that they may not need to contact your GP for medical information. This will reduce delays in treatment.
• When the SCR is fully implemented, you will be able to register with HealthSpace. HealthSpace is a secure website that allows you to see your SCR and keep track of your personal health information. You can also add some detail such as personal information or End of Life requirements. This gives you greater control over your health and wellbeing.
Benefits for Healthcare Professionals
• Information can be accessed from the SCR 24 hours a day which reduces the wait for information from other clinicians. This means you will be able to offer your patients more efficient care.
• With more information on which to base your decision, you will be able to treat you patients more appropriately by referring them to the relevant care services.
• Some of your patients may not speak English. This communication gap can cause delays and frustration in treatment. Having access to their information through SCR means that you can make clinical decisions in a more timely and informed manner.
What's next?
• Before any SCR is created, NHS Lambeth will send information to all Lambeth patients telling them about the programme and their options. This will be sent towards the end of April 2010. Patients will then have a minimum of 12 weeks to look at the information and decide whether or not to have an SCR.
• NHS Lambeth hope to create SCRs at the first practice in Lambeth by autumn this year. The rest of the GP practices will have SCRs created over time.
Where can I get more information?
• You can visit NHS Lambeth's website http://www.lambeth.nhs.uk/scr or Connecting for Health http://www.connectingforhealth.nhs.uk/systemsandservices/scr
• You can call the NHS Care Records Service Information Line on 0845 603 8510 or the Patient Advice and Liaison Service (PALS) at 0800 587 8078
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