Wirral adds Cerner foetal monitor to EPR

Wirral University Teaching Hospital NHS Foundation Trust will be the first UK trust to implement Cerner’s FetaLink maternity technology.

The system documents and displays the relationship between a foetus’ heart rate and its mother’s contractions; giving clinicians information about the foetus’ health during the Labour process.

It also enables clinicians to compare live and historical data in one view, so clinicians can spot changes that might require changes in care, and stores information so it can be viewed across hospital departments.

Michael Ellard, consultant gynaecologist and clinical service lead at women’s services, Wirral, said the system would improve maternity care.

“By improving the flow of information available and making it easier to understand, this system will help our clinicians provide the best possible care for mothers and babies,” he said.

“Remote access to information is extremely useful. Our patients receive one to one care in labour and direct assessment of their CTG, but this provides the opportunity to get a second opinion much more easily than we can at present.”

Wirral was one of the trusts due to receive CSC’s Lorenzo system under the National Programme for IT in the NHS.

However, it went outside the programme to implement Cerner’s Millennium EPR in 2010. It has since become one of Cerner’s key reference sites in the UK.

The FetaLink technology will be integrated with the EPR. Emil Peters, vice president and general manager UK, Cerner, said he hoped Wirral would be the first of many to adopt Cerner’s maternity technology.