Dorset Care Record accessed record 175,000 times in July 2025
- 15 August 2025
- The Dorset Care Record (DCR) was accessed than 175,000 times by health and social care professionals in July 2025
- More than 10,000 professionals delivering treatment, care and support have been trained to use the DCR
- It is estimated to have accrued more than £11.6 million worth of time efficiency benefits accrued in 2024/2025
The Dorset Care Record (DCR) was accessed more than 175,000 times by health and social care professionals in July 2025.
More than 10,000 professionals delivering treatment, care and support have now been trained to use Dorset’s integrated electronic health and care record, which launched in March 2018 to provide real-time access to health and social care information across multiple providers.
Many of the DCR’s users are from hospital settings, with University Hospitals Dorset recording more than 100,000 records accessed in July 2025.
Councillor Steve Robinson, cabinet portfolio lead for adult social care at Dorset Council, said: “Uptake of the DCR has grown substantially in recent times and it is making a huge difference for our residents.
“By having immediate access to vital information, it gives a more rounded picture of a patient’s health, enabling informed decisions to be made at the right time and the right place.”
The DCR is estimated to have accrued £11.6 million worth of time efficiency benefits in 2024/25, an increase from £8.7 million in 2023/24.
This figure is based on users confirming via the annual users survey that they are saving more than 30 minutes a day, predominantly through not having to call or email GPs or other services, as this information is now available to them through the card record.
DCR brings together information from hospitals, GPs, community teams and local councils, enabling details of a person’s medical or care history – and their needs – to be summarised in the same place.
It includes patient and citizen information including: health problems and diagnoses; prescribed drugs; blood tests, pathology and X-ray results; next of kin, carer and care provider; hospital discharge letters; and care plans agreed between citizens and professionals.
Over the last two years, more organisations have joined the care record, including ophthalmology provider CHEC Ophthalmology, Coastal Medical Partnership, Harbour Hospital, Nuffield Hospital, Oakhaven Hospice, Special Care Dentistry Dorset, Tricuro, and Wessex Clinical Van.
The DCR is provided by global healthcare company Orion Health and led by Dorset Council. Part of the £7.8m five year contract came from the NHS England Integrated Digital Care Fund, with additional funding coming from partner organisations.
It is supported by the health and social care organisation across the county: NHS Dorset Clinical Commissioning Group, Dorset County Hospital, Poole Hospital, the Royal Bournemouth and Christchurch Hospitals and Dorset HealthCare.
Meanwhile, an analysis, published in August 2025, estimated that Thames Valley and Surrey Care Record had saved around £17 million in professional time annually.
The unified care record connects more than 375 organisations, including 15 NHS trusts, 316 practices, 11 local authorities and dozens of independent and voluntary providers – serving a population of over 4.2 million people across Surrey, Frimley, Berkshire. Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire.
