SOCIAL care workers in North Yorkshire are at the forefront of a pioneering partnership aimed to improve support for people needing care.

The Yorkshire and Humber Care Record gives authorised social care workers easier access to information that helps them to understand all the requirements of the people they support.

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North Yorkshire County Council has been at the head of developing the system, alongside partners in the Humber, Coast and Vale Health and Care Partnership, after the region won £7.5m in NHS funding for the scheme.

North Yorkshire is the first authority in the region to go live with the system, followed by Hull City Council and the East Riding.

All North Yorkshire GP practices have joined the programme to enable access to relevant medical information about people already under the adult social care service.

Robert Ling, the county council’s assistant director of technology and change management, said: “North Yorkshire was an early adopter of this programme.

"It has been built by organisations in the Yorkshire and Humber region to meet our needs and we have been at the forefront of its design and development.

"It is an excellent example of co-operation between partners.”

Before the launch of the Care Record online portal, a social care worker who needed medical information about a person they were supporting would need to call that person’s GP practice and wait to speak to someone who could provide the information.

This delayed action by the care worker and took up the time of GP practice staff.

The Care Record allows such information to be accessed directly through a secure portal online.

Relevant information might include details of medication or recent GP appointments.

This helps front-line staff to make decisions based on a holistic view of the person’s health.

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Cllr Greg White, executive member for digital, said: “Being able to access GP data quickly without having to go through the GP practice relieves pressure on the system, improves the pace at which professionals can make important care decisions, improves the quality of those decisions, and, therefore, improves the care people receive.

“Such a service is more important than ever at a time when the care sector faces huge pressures and the challenge of recruiting additional staff.”

In time, the portal will expand to allow access to relevant hospital and social care records.

Cllr Michael Harrison, executive member for adult social care, said the new system enables care workers to make more effective use their time.

County Council care and support team manager Selina Hart has seen first-hand a range of benefits from the new system.

This includes reducing time to collate and collect information, avoiding duplication and updating records.

She said: “The programme provides the right information to the right person at the right time,.

She added that it is also good for the morale of staff and enables faster care provision.

 

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