caring Communication

are in their consultation.
“This is something that will be of huge benefit
for patients. Without eReferral, it has been
estimated that 18 pairs of hands touch a referral
letter between the time it leaves a GP’s
office until it gets to the person that inputs it
into the hospital system and makes the appointment.
eReferral allows for this process
to be much more efficient,” Richard added.
Individual Health Identifiers
(IHI)
An Individual Health Identifier or IHI is a
number that uniquely and safely identifies
each person that has used, is using or may
use a health or social care service in Ireland.
The IHI can be used to safely identify the individual
and will enable an individual’s correct
health records from different systems to be
linked together showing their medical history.
This ensures that healthcare practitioners
can safely identify the individual and therefore
provide health services an individual
supported by a comprehensive view of their
relevant health information.
“We are conducting a public consultation on
the Privacy Impact Assessment (PIA) for the
IHI. The PIA will be used to put in place safeguards
to reduce any risk of your personal information
being identified and will be incorporated
into the way that the IHI is created and
operated,” Richard explained. The consultation
process is open until April 8th 2016.
Electronic Health Record
“An Electronic Health Record (EHR) for Ireland
is the cornerstone of the eHealth Strategy.
A national EHR is a comprehensive and
combined solution that supports the creation
Key dates outlined for the rest of 2016 as part of the eHealth Strategy.
and sharing where appropriate of key patient
information,” said Richard.
The national EHR will consist of core operational
solutions (with functions such as
ePrescribing and Case Management), along
with the ability to aggregate data from these
systems into a comprehensive national
record, accessible to health and social care
professionals, and also to patients, service
users and carers. The EHR business Case will
be published in April of 2015 and will move to
understand the approvals process.
Open Data for Health
The publication of Irish Public Sector data,
available in open, free and reusable formats
is recognised as a key element of the Public
Service Reform agenda.
Through the national (http://data.gov.ie)
and regional Open Data Portals, citizens
can access raw Public Sector data, providing
insights into the operation of public
organisations and services. The aim of Open
Data is twofold; on the one hand facilitating
transparency of the Public Sector, and on the
other providing a valuable resource that can
drive innovation.Open Data can stem from
any domain – transport, education, housing.
However, its importance in the Health Sector
is significant. The amount of health data being
created and gathered is growing rapidly: data
about patient care, about health services, and
about infrastructure.
However access to and use of this data is
currently limited, even for health services
staff. Insights that could be gleaned or efficiencies
that could be identified in the data
are locked away in filing cabinets, personal
computers, or proprietary IT system.
Irish Council of Information
Officers (CCIO)
This enthusiasm for change and innovation
was particularly evident in the Council of
Clinical Information Officers (CCIO), made
up of volunteers from across the health
services.
“There are presently 145 people on the
council. They are people who are interested
in the use of health technology and
how it can best be applied in the Irish health
services. They are giving their time and
energy to help us, and I am really excited by
it,” said Richard.
“The members of the council are from all
different areas across the health service.
The council has a huge amount of experience
and it is great to have their input at an
early stage to enable IT solutions to help
them in their daily work and to make the
system better for patients,” Richard added.
The following CCIO management team
has been announced:
• Yvonne Goff – will be co-ordinating CCIO
activities and will represent the CCIO at the
OoCIO Senior Management Team.
• Michelle Kearns – will support CCIO coordination
activities with particular focus
on communications and event management.
• Seamus MacSuibhne – will liaise with
the ARCH team and will promote the need
for transparent research within eHealth,
from a clinical point of view.
• Mary Fitzsimons – will provide leadership
at the CCIO Council meetings while
also being the liaison for the Lighthouse
Projects which commencing in 2016.
• Joyce Healy – will provide clinical reviews
for key projects when required and
will provide leadership at the CCIO meetings.
Building on all the progress so far, the Office
of the CIO continues to look forward,
Approval was granted in January 2016,
to allow us to move to the next stage for a
large selection of projects which included:
• National Immunisation and Child Health
Information System (NICIS)
• Refresh of Laboratory System environment
(UHL hospitals)
• Medical Oncology Clinical Information
System (MOCIS)
• Lab Order Communications for SVUH
• AMNCH infrastructure, network and
Microsoft operating system refresh.
Richard concluded: “It is always going
to be a challenge to introduce so many
wholesale changes to the way people do
things and how they work. I continue to see
strong levels of enthusiasm and innovation
throughout the system, from our staff.
They can see that there is a smarter, more
efficient way of doing thingss,” he said.
spring 2016 | health matters | 27