08.01.16
Providers to access prison health records to ensure care continuity
NHS England’s new supplier of health and justice information services will allow, for the first time, patients in prisons, immigration removal centres, youth institutes and secure children’s homes to register with the General Medical Services.
As part of a contract awarded to The Phoenix Partnership (TPP), the new system will roll out in July to supply the Health and Justice Information system across places of detention.
The new system will also prevent patients from waiting for their medical records to be faxed over by their GP.
Kate Davies, NHS England national director for health and justice, said: “This is an important milestone in supporting the continuation of care and support to all adults, children and young people in the criminal justice system. It will allow clinical information and records to transfer between the community GP and the secure environments enabling and supporting quality healthcare for all.”
Healthcare providers will have access to patients’ community records, and those with complex health and social needs will be able to receive continuous care managed “faster and more appropriately”.
Records can then be securely transferred back to a GP when patients are no longer detained, allowing them to receive uninterrupted care – particularly important concerning long-term conditions.
Dr Jake Hard, clinical lead for the project, prison GP and chair of the Royal College of GPs secure environments group, said the move was a significant step forward in “supporting and promoting the continuity of care” for those in contact with the criminal justice system.
“The new developments will for the first time contribute to a more inclusive approach to providing health care in these settings and further support the clinicians providing care to their patients,” he added.
The Health and Justice Information Services Programme – delivered by NHS England and the HSCIC in partnership with Public Health England, the Youth Justice Board, the Ministry of Justice and the Home Office – has been in development for more than three years.
It was designed to support the National Offender Management Service in its aim to improve health outcomes for detainees and their integration back into society.