Blackpool Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust has selected an open source electronic patient record (EPR) called openMAXIMS from healthcare software provider IMS MAXIMS, to improve the recording and sharing of patient data across its hospital and community sites.
The open source approach is expected to save the trust several million pounds in licence fees and future development costs, while also providing more control on how the software is developed in line with the hospital's needs.
Implementation started in December 2015 and once rolled out, Blackpool will become the third NHS trust to deploy the IMS MAXIMS open source EPR.
Blackpool wanted to gain the benefits of a modern, open source EPR while simultaneously upgrading its existing PAS (patient administration system), legacy EPR in its theatre, and emergency department. It also plans to roll out order communications and results reporting from the openMAXIMS solution set.
The new EPR will allow over 3,000 clinical staff to share a single digital patient record across its 830-bed hospital sites, supporting the trust's drive towards being paperless by 2020 and introducing workflow efficiencies across all departments. The trust will also reap the benefits of the open source community to co-develop new applications faster and cheaper than if it had selected proprietary EPR software.
"We expect the open source approach to cost at least 60% less, compared to a traditional proprietary route," explained Steven Bloor, chief information officer at Blackpool Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust.
"The trust is a big supporter of the move towards open source within the NHS and always considers open source options first when procuring IT. We want to not only gain more efficient patient care by using the most advanced EPR available but at the same time, achieve value for money through an open and collaborative roadmap for ongoing software development. Having worked with IMS MAXIMS for nearly 25 years we were confident its innovative system would be the best fit for the organisation."
A detailed electronic patient record will be available at the point of care any time of day or night, so helping clinical staff work more efficiently, without having to wait for paper notes to move around the hospital or log-on to different systems to access patient information. This will not only free-up more time for patient care but reduce the chance of any errors being introduced to patient records, as data is captured once electronically and cannot be mislaid like paper records.
Blackpool was also attracted by the open and interoperable nature of openMAXIMS, allowing it to easily integrate with existing systems such as its clinical portal, without any expensive, additional API development.
"The openMAXIMS route offers a much lower total cost of ownership due to paying no licence fees but also in terms of integration, development, support and maintenance, which can be sourced from a competitive market," continued Mr Bloor. "When I speak to people about open source in the NHS, I say why wouldn't you consider it as an option? This flexibility on offer gives us the confidence the openMAXIMS software has a long-term roadmap for our organisation."
The openMAXIMS software was procured via the NHS Shared Business Services framework and the five-year contract involves IMS MAXIMS providing implementation, support, configuration, data migration, and maintenance.
"The roll-out of the new EPR will empower Blackpool to control its future roadmap and deploy technology that firmly meets its ongoing requirements and represents a significant milestone in our long-standing relationship with the trust," said Shane Tickell, CEO of IMS MAXIMS.
"Being the third NHS trust to opt for an open source EPR adds Blackpool to a growing community, whose clinical and financial objectives are being met by moving away from the proprietary model. IMS MAXIMS is working in partnership with these trusts to help them create truly innovative systems that will improve their performance for years to come."
Blackpool Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust is the third trust in the UK to select the openMAXIMS system. IMS MAXIMS released the code for its open source technology to the NHS in 2014.
About Blackpool Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust
Blackpool Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust serves a population of approximately 440,000 residents across Blackpool, Fylde, Wyre, Lancashire and South Cumbria and the North of England. It employs more than 6,000 staff and operates on a budget of approximately £335m per year. It has around 830 beds across all sites and see more than 100,000 day-case and inpatients, 300,000 outpatients and nearly 90,000 A&E patients every year.
About openMAXIMS CIC
Blackpool is also one of the founding members of the openMAXIMS community, which allows trusts to collaborate on developing the best roadmap for the software. Other members include Taunton and Somerset NHS Foundation Trust and St Helens and Knowsley Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust.
The community enables members to take advantage of each other’s expertise and share the cost of developing the software.
About IMS MAXIMS
IMS MAXIMS is a pioneering clinical technology specialist committed to improving the coordination of patient care in healthcare environments. Its expert team works in partnership with healthcare organisations to identify and deliver tailored, sustainable information sharing technology solutions supporting the provision of safer and more efficient care for current and future generations.
The organisation’s 29-year history of collaborating with clinicians has resulted in the development of proven, flexible, user-friendly, safe and interoperable open source electronic patient record software. It is used across 180 healthcare organisations and by 30,000 users each day to provide clinically-led technology solutions for over 13 million patients.