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The NHS Wales Informatics Service wishes you and your family a wonderful Christmas and very happy New Year.
Hoffai Gwasanaeth Gwybodeg GIG Cymru ddymuno Nadolig hyfryd a Blwyddyn Newydd hapus iawn i chi a'ch teulu.
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E-referrals help Hywel Dda reach cancer care target
Cancer patients needing urgent care in Hywel Dda University Health Board are benefitting from improved use of electronic referrals.
To improve waiting time performance for urgent suspected cancer (USC) patients, Hywel Dda's GPs, medical records staff and consultants are promoting use of the Welsh Patient Referral Service (WPRS).
This new push toward employing the WPRS more has seen the number of electronic referrals from GPs jump from 48% in August 2019 to 73% in November. E-referrals for USC patients have also climbed, reaching 96% in November, helping to achieve Hywel Dda's goal of having 90% of GP referrals for urgent suspect cancer patients processed electronically.
The WPRS enables electronic referrals to go directly from GPs to consultants - vital when patient care needs urgent attention. Consultants can carry out a number of electronic actions with each referral - including prioritising, returning referrals to the GP (with an explanation), and redirecting patients to non-consultant services or clinics.
The WPRS was implemented in Hywel Dda in 2016.
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Earlier this year, Emma Williams, the Clinical Lead for Choose Pharmacy at NHS Wales Informatics Service, gave a presentation on the Choose Pharmacy application at the Celtic Conference in Edinburgh.
Subsequently, members of the Community Pharmacy team from Northern Ireland expressed their interest in the application and wanted the opportunity to find out more. Similarly to Wales, Northern Ireland have a Minor Ailments Scheme (MAS) for pharmacy in place, however, it is currently paper-based and they are looking to develop this in to a digital service.
The Choose Pharmacy team invited Northern Ireland colleagues to the Cardiff office to showcase the application and give an overview of the service.
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"It's been great to have the opportunity to share our successes of Choose Pharmacy and to take the time to look back at how far the application has come in development."
Helen Thomas, Interim Director NHS Wales Informatics Service
"This was an excellent event, all areas were fully covered and surpassed our expectations, we really appreciated everyone's effort, commitment and enthusiasm."
Dr Vanessa Chambers, Head of Policy and Development,
Community Pharmacy Northern Ireland
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Young coders inspired by NHS Wales
Thousands of young coders have taken part in
the Wales-wide DVLA Code Challenge Competition
, with 200 finalists gathering in Swansea this month to present their work.
NHS Wales joined other organisations encouraging Wales' coding talent by setting themes for the 7-14 year olds to create digital games around.
The theme of 'Superbugs, and How to Prevent Them' inspired 12-year old Gwen from Pontarddulais Comprehensive School.
"We saw the NHS-theme and we were inspired to learn lots of new things," she said. "The over-use of antibiotics is a real problem because it adds to antimicrobial resistance and if this happens we won't be able to cure our illnesses. But we don't want that to happen, so this is our way of trying to help."
At the competition, Informatics Service staff spoke to the finalists about IT and programming jobs in the health service.
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FCI's first Members Conference launched by Anne-Marie Cunningham
Recently, our Associate Medical Director for Primary Care, Anne-Marie Cunningham opened the first Annual Members Conference for the Faculty of Clinical Informatics (FCI) in London.
The conference included presentations about the future of digital transformation, the need for accreditation of software to improve patient safety, and the importance of genomics.
The FCI has been established as the UK professional membership body for all clinical informaticians, including health and social care professionals, registered with the Professional Standards Authority.
"The event had a fantastic atmosphere throughout," Cunningham said, "and was a great occasion to get members together to talk about shared issues, common ground and get to know each other. Thank you to all those who attended and to all speakers, chairs and staff who made the day possible."
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There's still time to sign up to
NHS Hack Day.
This year, the two-day event that brings together open minds to create innovative products (and have a load of fun in the process) is, once again, being held in Cardiff University - this time on the 25th and 26th January.
Hack Days are a fun way to brainstorm collaboratively and come up with quick solutions. People with a wide range of skills are invited - not necessarily computer skills, just a love of healthcare and possibilities.
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Strengthening Delivery: A 'Look Ahead' from Interim Director Helen Thomas
In September, the Minister for Health and Social Services, Vaughan Gething, announced that the NHS Wales Informatics Service will transition from its current structure, as part of Velindre Trust, to a new Special Health Authority.
This is a landmark change, but one that builds on the excellent digital foundations already in place.
For my part, I feel privileged to lead the organisation through the transition period. I am excited about the future and plans to strengthen the delivery of national digital services, which are of real importance to health and care in Wales.
I would like to thank Andrew Griffiths, who steps down as the Director for the NHS Wales Informatics Service at the end of this month. He has had a remarkable impact over the last decade, overseeing ground-breaking national projects and his leadership has made a major contribution to the development of digital health in Wales.
On behalf of the whole organisation, I would like to wish him the best of luck for this next stage in his career.
As we approach the end of 2019 and the start of a new year, I'd like to thank all the people working for NWIS for their ongoing professionalism, dedication and commitment throughout the year and during a period of change. I know many will be working hard over the holiday period too, providing IT support for vital patient care services.
May I wish you all a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.
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