Emergency planning hub introduced at Birmingham Community Healthcare

A digital contingency planning hub has allowed staff at Birmingham Community Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust (BCHC) to make better use of their time during the Covid-19 pandemic.

The Covid-19 Contingency Planning Hub helped the trust to manage the pandemic locally by allowing it to track its operations and coordinate the effort of its 4,500 members of staff, as well as the approximate levels of personal protective equipment (PPE).

Staff have reported benefits including reduced need to chase information from within the organisation and team members have more time to carry out other tasks.

Through a programme of work, led by Steve Pollard, head of information and business intelligence at BCHC, a trust-wide system of e-forms and dashboards were developed.

Pollard said: “Without access to centralised information, the challenge of responding to the pandemic would have been much harder.

“Those challenges continue to exist and evolve and having the right technology in place is crucial to making decisions quickly and based on accurate data.

“We were able to develop new solutions rapidly using code light development tools hosted on a scalable, virtual infrastructure. As a result, we’ve been able to achieve significant time savings that have enabled the team to focus on delivering the best patient care, instead of chasing missing information.”

The platform was made possible thanks to NDL’s Digital Process Transformation platform.

The UK tech company helps to provide NHS trusts with the tools it needs to create bespoke digital solutions.

Tom Wright, head of digital engagement at NDL, added: “Over the past year we have been working closely with the Birmingham team, helping with their digital journey. Having the right solutions in place has enabled the team to respond quickly, effectively and in a way that is truly scalable during a time of crisis.

“This ensured that all operations were able to cope with unprecedented demand, and that they could do so safely while delivering the best possible care for patients and staff. As Trusts across the country consider the role of digital transformation within their recovery strategy, the solutions, knowledge and experience in Birmingham can be taken forward and shared for the public good.”