ELECTRONIC CARE PATHWAYS
Sian Aynsley
Information Skills Trainer
South London Healthcare NHS Trust
Queen Elizabeth, Woolwich
OUTLINE OF THE SESSION
What is an electronic care pathway?
 Where do they come from?
 How can they help me?
 Clinical Knowledge Summaries
 Map of Medicine
 Practical

LEARNING OBJECTIVES
Find out more about electronic care pathways
 Think about how electronic care pathways might be
useful in a clinical setting
 Learn how to use two types of electronic care pathway
programs using practical examples

WHAT IS AN ELECTRONIC CARE PATHWAY?
Electronic version of patient clinical care plans
 Patient-focused
 Evidence-based
 Available via database or web
 Text-based or visual

WHERE DO THEY COME FROM?
Started taking off around 2002
 Integral part of the NHS NPfiT programme
 Number of providers – mostly private companies






Nimbus
Oasis
SCHIN / Ebsco (CKS)
Map of Medicine
Controversial
Managed care
 Patient choice
 Clinical autonomy
 Cost v. quality

HOW CAN THEY HELP ME?
Reliable
 Quick
 User-friendly (no login details to remember!)
 Evidence-based
 Focused on common conditions in primary and firstcontact care
 Good for training purposes
 Aids coordination, cooperation between:

Providers
 Patients
 Carers
 Other organisations

SCENARIO

A 30 year old man presents with a sore eye after getting
“something” in it while out jogging this morning

How are you going to manage him?
CLINICAL KNOWLEDGE SUMMARIES (CKS)
Formerly known as PRODIGY
 Produced by SCHIN and Ebsco Publishing
 Funded by NICE
 Covers mainly primary, first-contact care pathways
 Available at http://www.library.nhs.uk or
http://www.cks.nhs.uk

CKS HTTP://WWW.CKS.NHS.UK
MAP OF MEDICINE
Started around 2001
 Developed as a collaboration between UCL and Royal
Free Hampstead NHS Trust
 Acquired by Informa plc in 2005, now owned by Hearst
Corporation
 Covers primary and secondary care pathways
 Available at http://nhsevidence.mapofmedicine.com
 NEW: Available via NHS Evidence search!

ANY QUESTIONS?