The SMR (Scanned Medical Records) is our digital repository of scanned patient medical records. It plays an essential role in managing patient referrals and housing scanned patient documents (around 17,000 of them a day!).
On 26 June, the SMR will undergo a significant upgrade to improve how we manage referrals. Take a moment to learn about the changes and what you need to do to be ready for the upgrade.
What’s changing?
The upgrade will introduce a new overall look and feel for the SMR. Stage one of the upgrade will introduce three new fields, new referral status options, enhanced search capabilities, and other features to improve how we capture and manage patient and referral data. Through the upgrade, the ‘eReferrals’ module will also be renamed as the ‘Referrals Manager’.
Future stages of the upgrade will introduce other enhancements to the platforms, such as the ability to attach PDF documents to referrals.
We will share specific details on these changes, resources and training to help you navigate the new system very soon.
Who will be impacted?
Everyone who uses SMR, including clinical and clerical teams, will need to learn about the new features. We will provide training and resources to ensure everyone is ready for the upgrade, including a comprehensive training module on LATTE.
Benefits of the upgrade
The upgrade’s core focus is improving how we enter data to align with government requirements. This will support the Department of Health in reporting on healthcare data to inform evidence-based decision-making, and:
- monitor healthcare trends
- identify areas where more support or investment is needed
- inform resource planning and allocation for healthcare services
- inform the development of health policies and guidelines
- measure the performance of public healthcare providers
Aside from data capture, the upgrade will improve the referrals process by providing better ways to track the status of referrals, better search capabilities and time-saving automated features.
What you will need to do
As an SMR system user, you will need to prepare for the upgrade by completing a training module on LATTE, which will be available shortly. You will also be invited to attend a training session where live system demonstrations will ensure you are familiar with the new system before the go-live date.
Keep an eye out for detailed information and resources coming soon.
Approved by Cassie Moore, Acting General Manager, and Nicholas Schultz, Acting Director, Clinical Operations | Specialist Consulting and Health Information Services