Leeds uses Web for staff records

Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust’s occupational health team has gone paperless with its staff records, using Emis Web.

The occupational health department went live with the system last year and is one of the first in the UK to go completely paperless with healthcare for its employees.

Andrea Hildred, business manager for the occupational health service at the trust said that with 25,000 staff to care for, a paper-based system no longer cut it.

“A paper-based records system was a massive headache as each interaction had to be recorded separately, collated and added to the employee’s occupational health file,” she said.

“We desperately wanted a system that would enable authorised team members to access and update an employee’s file safely, securely and in real-time.”

The Emis system lets the team track, monitor and update staff records according to developments. It also produces electronic reports for managers.

“Preparing clinics is one of our biggest tasks. Getting each attendee’s file, ensuring clinicians have the right details and then updating individual employee OH files with notes and actions took a great deal of resource,” said Hildred.

She added that the system has drastically reduced the amount of time staff spend on this.

“The system also enables us to react more efficiently in an emergency. For example, we support staff who are inadvertently exposed to blood,” she said.

“In these situations, enabling members across the team to view and update the affected individual’s file immediately is fantastic.”

Emis Web, which is mostly used in GP practices, has been customised to fit the occupational health service who have created bespoke templates and reports.

In the future the trust is looking at linking the system to an online screening programme for assessing the health of student doctors and nurses.