16/09/2024
The Western and Southern Health and Social Care Trusts will make history on 8 May 2025, as they become the final two Health and Social Care (HSC) Trusts in Northern Ireland to Go-Live with encompass, the ground-breaking digital health and care system. This milestone marks the completion of a regional-wide digital transformation, ensuring that every citizen in Northern Ireland will have their own digital health and social care record.
encompass, which has been progressively implemented across Northern Ireland’s Trusts since November 2023, is a clinically and operationally led programme that will replace outdated paper records with real-time, up-to-date digital information accessible to all those involved in delivering care.
Both the Western and Southern Trusts have closely observed the earlier rollouts of encompass in the South Eastern Trust on 9 November 2023, Belfast Trust on 6 June 2024, as well as the preparations ahead of Northern Trust which are due to Go-Live on 7 November 2024. Western and Southern Trusts are learning from their experiences to ensure a smooth transition for their own staff and service users.
The successful rollout in these Trusts has demonstrated the system’s potential to enhance the delivery of health and social care services across Northern Ireland.
Neil Guckian, Western Trust Chief Executive, emphasised how encompass will have a transformative impact on patient care, stating
“This is a once-in-a-generation moment for digital transformation in healthcare. encompass will give staff and clinicians instant access to patient care records, drastically reducing time spent on paperwork and empowering them to make informed, efficient decisions.”
Dr Maria O’Kane, Chief Executive of Southern Trust said
“encompass is a digital HSC record which will improve the quality of patient and service user information and care across the Health and Social Care service in Northern Ireland.”
The Western and Southern Trusts are eager to embrace this digital future and join the rest of the HSC Trusts across Northern Ireland. This integrated approach to healthcare will revolutionise how we provide care with real-time, up to date information to all those involved in delivering care, empowering them to make more effective, patient-centred decisions.
As the final Trusts to implement encompass, Western and Southern Trusts will not only complete this vital digital transition but will also solidify Northern Ireland’s position at the forefront of healthcare innovation.
Dr Dermot Hughes, Senior Responsible Owner for encompass, emphasised the significance of this:
“The upcoming encompass implementation for the Southern Health and Social Care Trust and the Western Health and Social Care Trust in May 2025 marks a significant milestone for the Health and Social Care in Northern Ireland, signifying the final phase of the process. This will mean all patients and clients in Northern Ireland will receive care on one electronic platform. Learning gained from prior implementations, will allow both Trusts to ensure the best preparations are put in place to provide a seamless and safe Go-Live.”
Dr Hughes added,
“The achievements so far since the first implementation in November 2023 have been the result of a collaborative effort across the entirety of HSCNI. This is beyond the core encompass teams and has involved virtually all Trust staff. I express my sincere appreciation to all individuals involved in this journey for their unwavering dedication and hard work.
“May 2025 will not only symbolise the conclusion of an implementation phase but it will introduce a new era of enhanced healthcare delivery, improved accessibility, and enriched and empowered experiences for HSCNI patients, service users and staff throughout Northern Ireland.”
This final step in the encompass journey marks a significant achievement for Northern Ireland’s Health and Social Care system, paving the way for a more integrated, patient-focused, and digitally advanced future.