A new era in Northern Ireland’s health service as all HSC Trusts ‘Go-Live’ on encompass
- Published:
-
May 8, 2025
Today marks a historic achievement for Health and Social Care (HSC) services in Northern Ireland as the Southern and Western HSC Trusts officially Go-Live with encompass, the digital health care record system.
This means that for the first time in history, all HSC Trusts across Northern Ireland are now integrated into one digital system, signifying a major step forward in streamlining patient care.
With encompass now fully operational across Northern Ireland, patients and service users from across the region can now benefit from My Care, the dedicated patient portal. My Care provides secure online access to personal health information and it has already over 120,000 users. We encourage everyone to sign up.
Health Minister Mike Nesbitt said: “Today marks a significant milestone in Northern Ireland’s health and social care service, as the final two Health Trusts ‘Go-Live’ on encompass. Its introduction across the Trusts places HSC Northern Ireland in the forefront of digital transformation of health service delivery”.
“This has been a concerted effort across the whole of the Health and Social Care system since it was first announced in 2020, and I want to sincerely thank each of those who have played a key role in getting us here. This is a once-in-a-generation opportunity and has allowed Northern Ireland to modernise our systems and fundamentally improve how we deliver care.”
Tom Simpson, Deputy Chief Digital Information Officer at the Department of Health and Director of Digital Health and Care Northern Ireland, said: “Today is a really important day for the transformation of our Health and Care sector. This isn’t just a new IT system, it is about changing how the sector works so that our staff have the right tools to deliver the best service for all in Northern Ireland”.
“encompass streamlines how care is delivered by giving care workers quick access to the right information at the right time. It eliminates heavy paper records, reduces repeat tests and helps pharmacists manage medicines more safely. It also provides better quality data to help improve services for the future and achieve better outcomes.”
Dr. Dermot Hughes, the Senior Responsible Owner for encompass, said: “A significant step for HSCNI has been achieved as encompass is now live in Southern and Western Trusts. This completes the roll-out of a single, unified digital care record across each health and social care Trust in Northern Ireland. This outcome is the result of many years of hard work and collaboration by thousands of staff, within Trusts, the core encompass team, the BSO and the DHCNI. I thank everyone involved for their commitment and expertise”.
“encompass will transform how we deliver care by making it safer, more connected and more patient-centric and by ensuring that the right information is available at the right time, no matter the location. It will transform patient experience and patient information. This is a proud day for the health and social care service and a powerful step towards a healthier future for all in Northern Ireland.”
Neil Guickian, Western Trust Chief Executive, paid tribute to staff, he said: “This is a huge moment for the Trust but also for the HSC as a whole. Preparing for encompass has been an immense task and no one should underestimate the incredible effort of all staff from across our Trust for the many months of planning and training to get us ready for Go-Live.
“I wish to thank our staff for their steadfast commitment to make Go-Live in our Trust a success. encompass will transform how we deliver care and improve experiences and outcomes for our patients and service users.”
Siobhan Hanna, Southern Trust encompass Programme Director (Interim) also paid tribute, she said: “This has taken years of planning and collaboration right across the health and social care system. I am so grateful to everyone who has helped to achieve this – regional encompass team, Epic system supplier, other Trusts who have released staff as ‘Super Users’ to support our own staff in Southern Trust who are learning to use the system.”
“encompass Go-Live is just the beginning. As we move forward, we will continue to listen, evolve and improve. Thank you for your commitment, your passion, and for being part of this transformation. Together, we are shaping a more efficient, modern and connected health and social care service for Northern Ireland.”
