North London trust deploys clinical messaging app Hospify

London North West University Healthcare NHS Trust has deployed clinical messaging app Hospify.

The rollout of the app to more than 10,000 staff aims to improve communication during the Covid-19 pandemic.

The app will allow staff to message each other on a secure platform using their mobile devices.

Sonia Patel, chief information officer (CIO) at the trust at the time of rollout, said: “Hospify’s approved messaging app provides our people with a critical communication channel at what is an extraordinarily challenging time.

“Rolling-out this service not only helps our teams to communicate at a time when normal interactions are more challenging but is a step in a wider strategy to improve our digital offering to all health and social care staff.”

Staff using the app are able to create groups, one-on-one chats and share pictures securely, with additional features to protect privacy such as a built-in passcode and the masking of personal details such as phone numbers or email addresses.

For clinical teams and trust management, the Hospify Hub online admin portal helps with onboarding staff and provides the trust with the ability to broadcast important messages and document attachments to keep staff quickly apprised of new developments.

This can be used to communicate with the trust’s entire staff or to target individual teams and shifts, without the need for people to have access to a PC.

James Flint, chief of Hospify, said: “The onset of coronavirus has underlined the growing importance effective digital clinical communications.

“Though consumer alternatives do exist, our healthcare professionals need access to technologies built for their needs, technologies that are easy to use and that they know they can trust to keep sensitive information secure, that can maintain privacy for staff and patients, and that have been rigorously tested and approved for the NHS.”

It’s been a busy for months for the north London trust before CIO Sonia Patel left for NHSX. It’s recently deployed a virtual visit solution to facilitate video calls between patients and loved ones.

It’s also rolled out a clinical electronic document management solution from IMMJ Systems which will help support virtual clinics.