Research suggests that 70% of the success of an electronic patient record (EPR) project can rest on effective user adoption.

In a recent webinar hosted by ANCILE Solutions, healthcare experts discussed the challenges faced in running traditional training programmes and Bobby Zarr, senior director of healthcare strategy at ANCILE Solutions, described how uPerform helped him prepare for an Epic go-live at Infirmary Health in the US.

Logistical challenges

There are huge practical challenges to running a traditional training programme ahead of a major system go-live; yet the education delivered may not be timely or effective.

David Kwo, a former NHS chief information officer (CIO), told attendees that when implementing Epic at Cambridge University Hospitals NHS FT, his team had been forced to use mobile offices in a car park, while at University College London Hospitals NHS FT, they hired buses to increase space capacity. 

“We were working eight hours per day, six days per week, for 10 weeks,” explained Kwo, of the training at UCLH. “It was a huge logistical exercise that required a lot of operational commitment,” Kwo explained.

Andy Kinnear, former NHS CIO and director of digital transformation at NHS South, Central and West Commissioning Support Unit, added: “On some of the go-lives that I was involved in, people were being trained 12 weeks before go-live. Expecting them to remember something three months after they were taught it is optimistic, at best.”

Infirmary Health turned to uPerform

E-learning can provide a solution to these issues. When Zarr was asked to lead the Epic go-live at Infirmary Health he initially intended to use Epic’s training materials, but there was a lack of classroom space.

“We turned to uPerform and trained 1,500 clinicians on the system,” said Zarr. “Then we extended the approach to nurses. We were able to take out a whole day of their Epic training and to use those eight hours for safety initiatives, instead.”

Accessible staff resources

ANCILE Solutions’ content creation and in-app learning platform, uPerform, enables training and healthcare experts to record lessons and guides, and makes them available to system users from any device.

Information can be turned into courses, video tutorials and additional tip sheets. Epic user organisations that download uPerform from the app Orchard can also offer end-users role-specific content.

Post go-live, uPerform’s training packs can also be used to familiarise new staff with systems before they start their role or shifts, while tips and tricks can be included to remind staff about key features and procedures.

Handling upgrades and changes through COVID-19

At Infirmary Health, uPerform is being used for information about COVID-19.

Zarr concluded: “Updating is the heart and soul of this. Unless you keep content updated and build-in changes it becomes useless, and uPerform makes that much easier.”