Two big things have happened in the past few weeks which have taken me back to the roots of digital transformation. Both have involved the implementation of digital care plans.
Big thing 1
I am working with one care home group on their digital transformation (a service that Care England can offer its members). After many months of getting the board, the management and the staff teams prepped, we have now embarked on the first stage which is choosing a care records software supplier. Presentations from solution providers are a great test for both the solution provider and the care provider. Preparation on both sides is essential in choosing a supplier who will be a major player in the transformation process. The choices of software suppliers are wide: from established companies that can offer you a seemingly full set of tools, to suppliers who are new, hungry and ready to adapt to you, as well as start-ups, which can base their offer exactly around what you want.
The important thing is to know that you are not simply choosing a provider; you are choosing a partner. Each care group has its own ethos and its own ways of working, and the solution provider must show themselves as respectful of that. The solution provider who stood out in the presentations did so for two reasons:
- they could address the specific issues of the care provider in question, and moreover
- they showed themselves ready to integrate with care solutions and work with other digital providers.
Big thing 2
The Digital Social Care team (www.digitalsocialcare.co.uk – of which I am proud to be a part) has been chosen by NHSX to work with the nine ICSs that have been successful in proposing programmes to advance the use of digital care records planning in their footprint. This is a real opportunity to put digital care records on a stable footing within ICS areas, and the link to how Digital planning integrates with the Local Shared Care Record will be interesting to observe. Each project has to have the full involvement of the local care sector, which bears out my belief that NHSX is walking the walkabout involving the care sector as a strategic (rather than token) partner. I am also involved in a project NHSX is sponsoring to help delineate the benefits of digital care planning, of which I am sure you will hear more later.
The common themes
It is essential that digital care planning is seen as the beating heart of digital transformation. Planning, as well as the heart, is also the brain of the organisation. As the human brain is responsible for disseminating information to the body, so does digital care planning have the responsibility for linking with all parts of the organisation and then communicating with outside agencies.
Daniel Casson is Care England’s Adviser on digital transformation.
Care England offers Digital Transformation Consultancy – Please contact for more details (dcasson@careengland.org.uk)
MD of Casson Consulting (London) Limited
Laing Buisson Conference Director
- Social Care & Retirement Living _ October 2021
- Social Care Tech 22 _ January 2022
Part of the Digital Social Care Team – www.digitalsocialcare.co.uk
@CareEngDigital | @DigiSocialCare
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