Derbyshire scraps Lorenzo plans

Derbyshire Mental Health Services NHS Trust has abandoned plans to implement Lorenzo, following problems with its development.

E-Health Insider understands the trust wants to see problems with the development of the iSoft 'strategic' electronic patient record system resolved before implementing it.

Earlier this year, NHS East Midlands published an IM&T update saying that Derbyshire Mental Health Services NHS Trust had become an early adopter and was working to deploy Release 2.0 care management, including day care management.

The document also identified Kettering General Hospital NHS Trust as implementing Release 2.0 care management, including emergency care.

The papers states: “These are scheduled for deployment in 2010 and both organisations are actively engaged in their projects as part of respective early adopter cohorts.”

However, EHI has learned that Derbyshire will scrap these plans and instead continue using one its existing system, CareNotes, at least until 2012. CareNotes is an electronic patient record system specifically designed for mental health trusts by Strand Technology.

A trust spokesperson told EHI: “The trust board agreed in November 2008 to adopt Lorenzo as the trust’s single clinical information system.

"We remain committed to Lorenzo in the long term and believe it will provide an excellent long-term solution, but at present there are a number of uncertainties with the timescale for delivery.

“In the interim, the trust will extend the use of one of its existing systems and adopt Lorenzo in the future, by which time we will have had the opportunity to see the system in operation at other trusts.”

Links: Strand Technology

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