Health and social care leaders gather to recognise progress of the Great North Care Record
Over 70 representatives from NHS organisations and local authorities from across the region gathered at Ramside Hall on Friday, 20th October – to meet, learn, and recognise the importance of a connected shared care record for the North East and North Cumbria.
The Great North Care Record (GNCR) is a platform that enables health and social care professionals in the North East and North Cumbria to access patient information from a range of sources including GP records, mental health, social care, allergy information, maternity, and community services, to improve direct patient care. After being launched in 2020, it is now being viewed over 500,000 times each month, with 13 million views to date.
The event at Ramside Hall celebrated the milestones the collaborative project has achieved and announced future developments for the system, including new integrations, a new website, and inclusion in the North East and North Cumbria’s Integrated Care Board’s wider digital strategy.
Speakers included Melissa Mead MBE, who tragically lost her son William to Sepsis due to a lack of shared care record information, GNCR Senior Project Manager Jill Watson; Sérgio António, Senior Team Lead & Interface Architect from GNCR’s technology partner Oracle Cerner; Executive Chief Digital and Information Officer for North East and North Cumbria Integrated Care Board (NENC ICB), Professor Graham Evans; and Steve Cram CBE, retired athlete and GNCR brand ambassador.
There was also a Q&A session with a panel of ambassadors – consisting of health and social care professionals who use the GNCR in their day-to-day work. Attendees were invited to network, learn, and question how the GNCR could be used more effectively, as well as having the chance to sign up for further training and onboarding sessions.
Lisa Sewell, GNCR Programme Director, who facilitated the event said “It was brilliant to see so many colleagues join us, despite the terrible weather, to network, learn, and share their thoughts on the Great North Care Record.
“This platform is something for our whole region to be proud of, and everyday assessment, treatment and care are improved through the access of this information – our event celebrated everything we have achieved to date, and to launch our next phase.
“Hearing personal experiences throughout the day – especially from Melissa – demonstrated just how important the sharing of a person’s information is, and this was a great opportunity to reengage with health and social care professionals across the region.
“Inspired by Steve Cram’s anecdotes of the London 2012 Olympics and comparisons to what can be achieved within a strong collective when there is clear ambition and a wider benefit for all, I hope our colleagues left the room with a strengthened commitment of how we can continue to achieve more together.”
Anyone who would like more information, become a GNCR ambassador, or receive further training on the GNCR platform can contact nuth.gncr@nhs.net.
