Digitisation in neighbourhood health: the key to true integration

Katie Thorn, Project Lead at Digital Care Hub, discusses why digital must be at the forefront of integrated working in social care.

Digitisation is at the heart of the Government’s plans for the future of health and care. The social care sector and technology will have to be at the heart of any plans if we are to achieve the three key shifts:

• From hospital to community
• From analogue to digital,
• and from sickness to prevention.

For social care providers, that means we are not on the periphery. The sector is central to achieving integration, improving outcomes and unlocking independence for people.

Why digital is essential to the integration of health and social care

We often talk about “integration” and “interoperability” as a technical problem to be solved, but that isn’t really what it means. To achieve true “integration” we must bring together health and social care services around the person, remove silos, enable seamless information flows and proactive support. For this to happen, digital must be the backbone – enabling the flow of information to the right person, at the right time

Digital social care records (DSCRs) are now regarded as part of the foundational infrastructure for integration. The roll-out of GP Connect, directly inside DSCRs, mean that more care providers have access to the GP records of the people they support than ever before. This allows for more timely, informed and proactive care. The announced interoperability platform, to bring together health and care data, will continue to shift the dial to greater integration across the system.

Digital enabling independence for people in receipt of care

Digital tools are not just about providers’ back-office efficiency. They are about giving individuals greater control, enabling independence and supporting their wellbeing in a community setting.

Through remote monitoring, virtual check-ins or sensor-enabled assistive technology, the people we support can live in their own homes for longer, with the right help arriving at the right time, rather than reacting after a crisis.

We know that the plan is to move more care into neighbourhoods and communities and the social-care sector is uniquely placed to deliver this. Our reach into homes, neighbourhoods and communities means we can deliver the human touch where health services often cannot. Combine that with tech and we multiply our impact. The shift “from hospital to home” emphasised in the Plan supports this approach.

Digital must be an enabler of independence, creating less administrative burden on staff, more proactive and interconnected care for people, and stronger links between social care and health.

By linking with health-data systems, social care services become a prevention partner - detecting early, acting early, keeping people well and at home, and reducing pressure on acute services.

Cyber-risk, supply-chain risk and why you must take it seriously

Whilst going digital brings enormous benefits - it also brings risks. For social care providers, cyber-security and supply-chain risk are very real and material. The many high profile cyber-attacks this year – from M&S to Jaguar Land Rover – are indicators of the scale of the problem and the sensitivity of the data we hold in social care means that we must be vigilant and prepared in our own cyber response. Don’t forget that:

• Your digital records contain sensitive personal data - breach or outage can harm individuals and your reputation.
• A supplier failure or cyber-attack can mean loss of access to records, rostering, monitoring systems - business continuity plans must cover that eventuality.
• Interoperability means many systems interconnect - a weakness in one link can spread risk.
• Regulators (e.g., Care Quality Commission) expect you to use digital systems safely and effectively.

Therefore: adoption of digital systems must go hand-in-hand with cyber-risk management, supplier assurance, business-continuity planning, staff training and incident response plans. Support on all of these elements can be found on our website.

What can you do now?

To move from aspiration to action, here are some practical pointers for social-care providers today:

Strengthen cyber-security and supplier assurance

• Complete tools such as the Data Security and Protection Toolkit (DSPT) and review your supplier contracts and continuity plans.
• Ask suppliers for evidence of resilience, incident response, backup arrangements.
• Test your business-continuity plan: what happens if your digital system goes down? Are paper fallback processes known?
• Train staff: password hygiene, phishing awareness, remote-access controls, mobile-device management.

Assess your digital maturity and use the What Good Looks Like tool

• Do you have a digital social-care record system (DSCR) in place or planned?
• Do your systems comply with interoperability standards, and can they connect into local shared care records?
• Plan for independence-supporting technologies
• Embed prevention in your digital strategy

Map workflows

• Wow does information currently flow from your service into health partners?
• Where are the gaps?

Engage with healthcare and neighbourhood teams

• Ask: how can our digital records feed into shared neighbourhood pathways?
• Be active: request access to the local shared care record, explore what contributions your service can make.

Choose digital solutions that integrate, not fragment

• When selecting or upgrading software, prioritise interoperability: will it talk to shared-care record systems? Will it align with local standards?
• Avoid introducing silos of tech that don’t talk to each other - duplication creates risk and undermines integration.
• Consider change-management: ensure staff are trained, processes adapted, dual-working phased out.
• Set metrics: e.g., time saved on admin, reduction in avoidable admissions, user satisfaction, percentage of care plans shared.

Review regularly

• Digital transformation is not a one-off. Continuous improvement is critical.
• Share learning: participate in local networks, peer groups, innovation forums.

For social-care providers, digital is no longer an optional extra - it is fundamental to our role in an integrated, prevention-oriented, community-centred health and care system. By aligning with the 10 Year Plan’s direction, adopting interoperable digital records, leveraging technology to enable independence, and embedding cyber-resilience, you position your service to deliver greater value and stronger outcomes for the people you support.

Learn more about integrated working.

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