NHS Somerset ICB awards contract to Black Pear for shared care record

NHS Somerset Integrated Care Board has announced that Black Pear Software Ltd has been awarded a five plus two-year contract as the Somerset Integrated Digital e-Record+ (SIDeR+) technology partner.

The first SIDeR contract with Black Pear commenced in 2018 and is due to end in April 2024. With Black Pear, the SIDeR now exceeds 30,000 uses per month since going live in 2020 from over 2,200 users across health and care organisations in Somerset and over the border.

There are also over 42,000 care plans hosted on SIDeR that can be created, read or updated by any appropriate member of staff involved in that person’s care.

SIDeR+ will launch in April of this year and will build on the existing SIDeR service that delivers an on-demand shared care record and a suite of persisted shared care forms, to support direct care.

SIDeR+ will continue to improve and enhance the service over the next seven years, led by NHS Somerset ICB with Black Pear Software Ltd, supported by stakeholders including Somerset Council, Somerset NHS Foundation Trust, Primary Care and St Margaret’s Hospice.

Dr Matthew Dolman, chief clinical information officer at NHS Somerset ICB, said: “The ability for teams from multiple organisations to be able to see in real time, a useful and digestible view of each other’s records can provide an additional layer of safety when delivering person centred care and integrated care.

“The ambition of the SIDeR+ team leading this work is to co-create the best shared care record in the UK. If you want to get involved, please contact us.”

Developments for the release of SIDeR+ include access to documents shared with and stored in Somerset primary care GP systems, connection to some Dorset GP system records to support person flow coming into Somerset for treatment, sharing care plans to the National Care Record Service (NCRS) and onwards to other care providers such as South Western Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust, and a digital version of the Somerset Treatment Escalation Plan (STEP).

Core to the SIDeR+ programme will be active engagement, promotion and support to increase usage figures and to ensure SIDeR+ is established as the default system used when delivering care in Somerset.

Dr David Jehring, CEO at Black Pear Software Ltd, said: “The success of SIDeR was a result of a genuine partnership with visionary leaders in Somerset, and we are enthusiastic about extending this collaboration.

“As we embark on the SIDeR+ initiative, our commitment is to help address contemporary healthcare challenges through open standards, innovation, and genuine integration of care. We are dedicated to fostering a healthcare ecosystem that thrives on collaboration and cutting-edge solutions, ultimately enhancing the delivery of patient-centred care.”

Back in December, we reported that Somerset NHS Foundation Trust successfully integrated the Better Meds electronic prescribing and medication administration solution into SIDeR.