Health Minister Mike Nesbitt has declared that the full rollout of the encompass patient record system places Northern Ireland at the "forefront of health service delivery," as the Southern and Western Health and Social Care Trusts completed their 'Go-Live' today (Thursday, 8th May).

The encompass system is now operational in all five Trust areas, marking what the Minister described as a "new era" for health and social care in the region. The integrated care record system provides a single digital care record for every citizen in Northern Ireland who receives health and social care. The Southern and Western Trusts join the South Eastern, Belfast, and Northern Trusts, which have gone live over the past 18 months.

Patients and service users across Northern Ireland will now be able to access their health information online via 'My Care', the system's patient portal, which is available as an app or webpage, enabling individuals to take a more active role in their own care.

Health Minister Mike Nesbitt said: "Today marks a significant milestone in Northern Ireland’s health and social care service, as the final two Health Trusts ‘Go-Live’ on encompass. Its introduction across the Trusts places HSC Northern Ireland in the forefront of digital transformation of health service delivery."

He added, "This has been a concerted effort across the whole of the Health and Social Care system since it was first announced in 2020, and I want to sincerely thank each of those who have played a key role in getting us here. This is a once-in-a-generation opportunity and has allowed Northern Ireland to modernise our systems and fundamentally improve how we deliver care." Tom Simpson, Deputy Chief Digital Information Officer at the Department of Health and Director of Digital Health and Care Northern Ireland, stated: "Today is a really important day for the transformation of our Health and Care sector. This isn’t just a new IT system, it is about changing how the sector works so that our staff have the right tools to deliver the best service for all in Northern Ireland."

Mr Simpson highlighted the practical benefits: "encompass streamlines how care is delivered by giving care workers quick access to the right information at the right time. It eliminates heavy paper records, reduces repeat tests and helps hospital-based pharmacists manage medicines more safely. It also provides better quality data to help improve services for the future and achieve better outcomes."

Dr Dermot Hughes, the Senior Responsible Owner for encompass, commented: "A significant step for HSCNI has been achieved as encompass is now live in Southern and Western Trusts. This completes the roll-out of a single, unified digital care record across each health and social care Trust in Northern Ireland. This outcome is the result of many years of hard work and collaboration by thousands of staff... I thank everyone involved for their commitment and expertise."

He concluded: "Encompass will transform how we deliver care by making it safer, more connected and more patient-centric and by ensuring that the right information is available at the right time. It will transform patient experience and patient information. This is a proud day for the health and social care service and a powerful step towards a healthier future for all in Northern Ireland."

The Northern Ireland health and social care service partnered with global company Epic to develop encompass, tailoring the system to local needs based on best practices from leading hospital organisations worldwide. Epic currently provides electronic records for over 300 million people globally. The rollout has involved extensive work from professionals across the HSC, including Trusts, the Department of Health, Digital Health and Care NI (DHCNI), the Strategic Planning and Performance Group (SPPG), and the HSC’s Business Services Organisation (BSO).