A healthcare platform that makes it easier for pregnant people and their midwives to stay in touch and share information is now live and being rolled out across University Hospitals of Morecambe Bay NHS Foundation Trust (UHMBT).
After joining forces with Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust, East Lancashire NHS Trust and Blackpool Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, UHMBT has now begun to implement Badgernet; a dedicated Electronic Patient Record system for maternity services. This is a gradual rollout for families joining the Trust early in their pregnancy.
The app allows pregnant people to access their own medical notes, look at healthcare leaflets recommended by their midwife and self-refer to maternity services at any time using a PC, tablet or smartphone. Badgernet also allows service users to complete their birth plan, keep a weekly diary, and upload photos which can be shared with family and friends.
Authorised maternity colleagues across different organisations can then access the information and record notes in real-time from hospital or in the community.
Karen Bridgeman, Digital Midwife, UHMBT, said: “We are so pleased to be able to implement Badgernet at our Trust and continue to work with our Partners to provide the best maternity care possible.
“Anyone registering at UHMBT in early pregnancy will now be able to benefit from using the Badgernet system. This includes access to the Badgernotes app which provides week-by-week pregnancy information, access to care plans and maternity records, and an open line of communication with our Midwives.
“Maternity staff will benefit from an intuitive system that follows the maternity pathway of care, in turn saving time for staff across Morecambe Bay. This allows maternity staff to spend more time on what’s really important – caring for families.
“This is a truly incredible digital advancement and we’re thrilled to be able to use the Badgernet system with pregnant people and families across south Cumbria and north Lancashire.”
Sue Smith OBE, Deputy Chief Executive and Executive Chief Nurse, UHMBT, said: “The implementation of Badgernet across our Trust will make such a huge difference to all of our maternity service users as well as our Midwives and maternity colleagues.
“The system will help us to improve the quality and safety of the service by giving pregnant people much more control over their records and care notes and ensuring that women and families have a more personalised and positive experience throughout the pregnancy.
“As well as making it easier for mums-to-be and midwifery staff to monitor the progress of a pregnancy, Badgernet also makes it easier for staff to capture data to help us monitor the service and ensure that we continue to provide safe, quality care.”
The Badgernet implementation is part of plans for a fully integrated maternity service across south Cumbria and north Lancashire, expected to be in place by the end of 2021.
More information about using the Badgernet system has been shared with maternity service users and their families directly.
For further information contact [email protected]