Croydon courts GPs with ordering system

Croydon University Hospital is implementing Sunquest’s Integrated Clinical Environment to provide an electronic ordering system for GPs.

The hospital, part of Croydon Health Services NHS Trust, decided to go out to tender for a new electronic ordering system in February 2010, after concluding that its existing software needed to be improved or replaced to meet the needs of GP practices.

Sunquest Information Systems was chosen from three other healthcare IT software companies after a procurement process that included input from GP and hospital representatives.

The hospital, which has 64 GPs in its catchment area, said it gets about 50% of its pathology workload and 30% of its radiology workload from GPs. It therefore felt it was important to involve GP representatives in the tender review process.

The ICE Requesting and Reporting suite of web-based applications will allow clinicians based in wards, clinics or GP surgeries to request tests and receive results.

It is currently in testing with full implementation due for March this year, after the applications have been piloted with the three GP systems – EMIS, INPS Vision and iSoft – that are used in the area.

The trust hopes the system will also produce significant time savings. Its functionality includes an alert for GPs if a patient has already had a particular investigation.

Peter Norris, Croydon University Hospital’s RIS-PACS manager, said: “We know that GPs will like using the Sunquest solution.

"They have waited a long time for an electronic ordering system that meets their needs and ICE simply offers them features they don’t have access to at other trusts.

"We hope to use the new electronic ordering system to make the hospital a focal centre for GPs, aggressively courting GPs from the area surrounding Croydon.”

Norris said the hospital will use the ICE system for GP ordering and results reporting but that it will continue to use its existing ordering system within the trust.

David Allcock, vice president of international sales and general manager at Sunquest, said: “We are delighted to be assisting Croydon University Hospital with its GP requesting and reporting service and look forward to seeing the trust reap the benefits once the system has been fully implemented.”