New tech platform supporting Greater Manchester response to COVID-19

Care Homes and GP practices across Greater Manchester are now benefiting from a new, first of its kind, situation reporting system being used daily to monitor PPE stock levels, staffing availability, infection rates and outbreaks to identify early signs of instability so swift action can be taken.

The innovative reporting system, which is now operating in 540 Care Homes, allows all ten Greater Manchester councils to share data in one place, creating a visual dashboard to show a clear picture of operational pressures during COVID-19.

The situation reporting system is also live in 445 GP Practices, 681 pharmacies and was launched in urgent dental centres earlier this month. In the coming weeks, the reporting system will also be rolled out in opticians and supported living centres.

Sir Richard Leese, Chair Greater Manchester Health and Social Care Partnership said: “I continue to be incredibly proud of the response in Greater Manchester to this pandemic, from the people volunteering to support our most vulnerable, to the businesses donating much needed PPE.

“The digital response has been no exception - the speed at which this new situation reporting tool is being deployed across our city-region is ground-breaking and is helping us manage this pandemic in a much more coherent and proactive way

“Working collaboratively like this allows the Partnership to effectively support local authorities when they are under significant pressures, including redistributing PPE and assisting with infection control.”

Cabinet Member for Health and Wellbeing, Bury Council, Cllr Andrea Simpson, said: “The care home situation reporting system has transformed the way we work to support care homes across Bury.

“The system is saving time for both care homes and council colleagues, by providing one dashboard where people can access the required information. Information on infection rates, PPE stock and staffing levels are entered into one system which immediately flags any issues so council staff can urgently escalate as necessary. The situation reporting system has been so useful, we plan to continue using it when we move back into a more business as usual setting post COVID-19.”

How does it work?

The data and reporting sit on the Greater Manchester Digital Platform, an advanced technology solution that allows health and public sector professionals to use and share information in real-time. The platform was created to ensure that professionals supporting residents have the right information, at the right time and in the right way. Reporting of this kind has been developed by the GMCA and GMHSC Partnership to support the transformation and digitisation of public services.

In Greater Manchester, a PPE Taskforce was established to procure PPE and ensure supplies are managed between frontline services and other areas where there is need. The reporting system gives the Taskforce visibility of where PPE will be needed in the coming weeks, helping to prevent shortages across health and care settings.

The data collected from the system is managed by the GMHSC Partnership, and will be regularly shared locally through the Mayor of Greater Manchester’s weekly press conferences. Recording Operational Pressures Escalation Levels (OPEL) across Greater Manchester allows the GMHSC Partnership to effectively support local authorities when they are under significant pressures, this includes supporting redistributing PPE and assisting with infection control.

 The Greater Manchester Digital Platform also holds a series of other applications developed to support health and public sector professionals. The Greater Manchester Community Hub Application, which sits on the platform, was developed to help coordinate volunteer activity and match volunteers with vulnerable people in need of support during the pandemic.

Article Published: 15/06/2020 09:36 AM