Changing the way we access your health and care records.

Ever wondered why, when you visit your GP or hospital, they can’t see all your health and care information?

And why you find yourself having to answer the same old questions over and over – about things like the medicines you take, the treatment you’ve had, and whether you have any allergies?

The simple answer is they all use different computer systems to record your details. And because these systems aren’t connected, the health and care organisations looking after you can’t see the information each other holds on you.

But that’s now changing with the introduction of the Lincolnshire Care Portal, also known as a Shared Care Record.

Our experience of working with COVID-19 has shown how important it is for the health and social work professionals caring for a person to be able to see their information without delay when needed. The Lincolnshire Care Portal will make a joined-up approach to health and care much more possible. Find more information below.

  • What is the Care Portal?

    The Care Portal is a secure computer system that provides health and care staff with a selected view of a patient’s personal information contained in different health and care systems.

    At the moment, every health and social care organisation that you use has a different set of patient or service user records for you. These records may duplicate information or one record might hold information about your treatment, care and support that another one doesn’t. To provide the best care to you as a patient or service user it is essential that health and social care professionals have access to the most up-to-date information.

    The Care Portal enables users to view an integrated care record for the patient. It brings together selected patient information from multiple organisations and systems in real time. It can also notify users when relevant events occur as well as providing secure communication between care providers. The Care Portal does not create a new record and data is not stored in the Care Portal.

  • Why do we need the Care Portal?

    Previously, health and care staff from one organisation could not always see information about you, that had been recorded by another organisation. This meant that they couldn’t always access the latest information about you, quickly, to make the most effective decisions about your care.

    “The biggest barrier to managing frail older adults is the ability to have a care and support plan that is instantly accessible to both patients, carers and health and care staff. The Care Portal is able to provide this.” Consultant Geriatrician

  • What does the Care Portal mean to me?

    Health and care staff can check your personal information such as any long term conditions you have, any medication you are taking, or test results more quickly and easily. This means health and care staff will be able to make sure your care is coordinated to support you as effectively as possible. It may also mean that any treatment you need could start sooner, and help to ensure that any tests are not repeated unnecessarily.

  • What kind of information will be shared?

    The Care Portal provides a view of selected personal information about each patient or service user so that whenever you are being treated or cared for by the NHS or social care services the people looking after you will have the most up-to-date information.

    Examples of the information that could be included are:

    • Address and telephone number – so we have one set of contact details for you.
    • Diagnosis list – to make sure your health or social care professional has a complete record of your care.
    • Allergies – to make sure you aren’t prescribed or given any medicines you could have an adverse reaction to.
    • Test results – to speed up your treatment and care.
    • Referrals, clinic letters and discharge information – to make sure the people caring for you have all the information they need about treatment you are having.
  • How is my personal information used?

    The personal information in the Care Portal is used to ensure that health and care staff involved in your care have accurate and up to date information so they can assess and improve the quality and type of care you receive.

    Access to the Care Portal is strictly controlled. A full audit trail is maintained to track who is accessing your personal information. Your personal information will not be shared with any third party organisations.

    If you do not want your personal information to be viewed by health and care staff in the Care Portal you will need to complete an Opt Out Form.

Learn more about the Lincolnshire Care Portal

If you would like to learn more about the Lincolnshire Care Portal, we have extra information available.

Care Portal e-Learning

https://lincolnshire.icb.nhs.uk/care-portal-e-learning/

Information for GP Practices

https://lincolnshire.icb.nhs.uk/care-portal-information-for-gp-practices/

Frequently Asked Questions

https://lincolnshire.icb.nhs.uk/care-portal-frequently-asked-questions/

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