IMPROVED technology will help provide even better care for Great Western Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust patients thanks to a successful funding bid.

The Trust has secured £1.35m from NHS England for its Real Time (To) Care Programme and It plans to spend the cash installing more real-time digital screens at Swindon’s Great Western Hospital (GWH) and develop its electronic patient information storage systems.

One of the programme’s main aims is to move away from using paper-based patient notes to having such information available electronically so it can have quicker and more accurate decision-making for patient care and will also speed up patient flow.

The Trust will electronically share with GPs patient hospital discharge information; enabling details to be instantly available to GPs should they require them.

Dr Constantin Jabarin, Great Western Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust’s chief clinical information officer, said: “It is fantastic news that we have secured this money as it will allow us to use technology more to further improve the way we care for our patients.

“Having up-to-date information about a patient’s care is vital to being able to treat them efficiently and effectively and I am sure patients will see tangible benefits.

“Being able to join-up the various stages of care provided to patients through our electronic information system provides clinicians with the tools they need to give patients the best possible experience.”