IT issues uncovered at specialist trust

A report has found that the Royal Orthopaedic Hospital NHS Foundation Trust has no “coherent strategy” and “is off the pace” in its use of IM&T.

A review of the trust’s IM&T services, conducted by consultancy firm, Thorley Torrance, found that technology is “fundamental” to achieving the trust’s strategic and business objective; but there is no clear strategy for using IM&T to support the trust’s business.

The review was commissioned by the trust and included feedback from 13 stakeholders including the executive management team.

The report notes that the trust’s strategic approach has been based on the deployment of National Programme for IT in the NHS systems such as Lorenzo, CSC’s electronic patient record.

The failure of of NPfIT to deliver Lorenzo to the North, Midlands and East has left the trust using iSoft’s IPM patient administration system, according to the EHI Intelligence NHS Trust Database.

The report says the trust’s use of this system depends on University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust and the “extent of this risk has yet to be quantified.”

The review also found that clinicians believed “IM&T solutions are selected based on cost rather than clinical need” as shown by the selection of its picture archiving and communications system and its use of NHSmail, which they felt “compromised the transfer of data and images between consultants that are working across sites.”

There was also “tacit agreement” among the executive team that the trust is “falling behind in enabling patient engagement by IT” and that this could compromise the trust as patients become more IT literate.

Thorley Torrance found there was no “senior responsible officer with the vision and knowledge” to drive the trust’s IM&T agenda and that it does not have a regular report setting out its IT objectives.

The consultants also found there is no “refresh strategy” for devices and software, and that there is “no evidence of financial control at project level.”

In summary, the report placed the trust at borderline level between one and two on the NHS Infrastructure Maturity Model, meaning that it has only very basic control over its core systems.

The review recommends the development of a strategy that supports its overall plan for the period 2009-15, and the appointment of an individual with executive responsibility for IM&T.

The Royal Orthopaedic Hospital NHS Foundation Trust chose not to provide comment when asked by eHealth Insider.