The National Screening Committee and the NHS Procurement Agency have selected Sysmed Solutions as an approved supplier to the National Screening Programme for Retinopathy
Sysmed's DRS web-based clinical and information management system will help in the delivery of a cost effective national screening strategy for retinopathy in the UK and support the government's National Service Framework (NSF) for Diabetes. Diabetes is a chronic disease on the increase, forecast to affect up to 10% of the population by 2010, with diabetic retinopathy being the largest single cause of blindness among workers in the UK.
Such is the concern that the Diabetes NSF was established in early 2003 to put in place national standards ensuring consistency of care.
One of the key targets of the diabetes NSF is to ensure that by 2006 a minimum of 80% of people with diabetes are screened for diabetic retinopathy, and treated where necessary.
To deliver this target, Primary Care Trusts (PCTs) are required to implement a high quality systematic eye screening and treatment programme, including recall and outcomes.
To help achieve this, a set of very clear specifications has been outlined for information systems to support retinal screening and link with the Diabetes Information Strategy.
Not only has Sysmed's DRS system been designed to meet the functional requirements of the National Screening Programme, but it has also been carefully structured with the end-users in mind to ensure it is both simple and fast to use.
The system's structure is built on the results of extensive process mapping across a number of clinics in the UK and applying the resultant best practice.
In addition to clinical information, Sysmed's system also provides general management and statistical information which can help PCTs, for example, in target management.
Built on web technology the system is ideal for disparate locations, for example groups of PCT's working together on larger programmes or ophthalmologists reviewing data from remote locations.
"We are extremely pleased to have been selected to support such a crucial screening strategy," said David Jahn, business development director for Sysmed.
"Uniquely, our system has been specifically designed to meet the requirements for the entire NSF, allowing clinics using our system for retinal screening to have the option to expand on its future use.
"All Sysmed's systems have been designed in close consultation with clinicians and built to support existing processes, facilitate multidisciplinary working and enable access to the right information regardless of location".
Over the past two years the Sysmed diabetes team has achieved significant recognition for both innovation and delivery of a number of web-based installations around the UK, one of which is St Georges Healthcare NHS Trust.
These user-defined solutions are enabling many clinics to move towards paperless operation in compliance with the NSF.
