Pathology teams complete major IT upgrade while keeping services running

More than 100 members of staff from University Hospitals of North Midlands NHS Trust (UHNM) and partner organisations have worked through the night to deliver a major upgrade to a vital pathology computer system all without disrupting patient care.

The North Midlands and Cheshire Pathology Service (NMCPS), which serves UHNM, Mid Cheshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust and East Cheshire NHS Trust has successfully completed a major upgrade to its laboratory information system.

The system helps pathology teams manage and report thousands of test results for hospitals, GPs and community services across the region.

Rebecca Sivers, acting deputy head of NMCPS, said: "I am incredibly proud of the pathology teams and all those involved in this programme. Their collective efforts ensured a seamless transition to the upgraded platform while maintaining safe patient services throughout the 
implementation.

"Patient care remained at the centre of every decision and conversation surrounding this upgrade and the dedication, professionalism and teamwork shown by staff across the network were exceptional.

"This achievement reflects the strength of collaboration across NMCPS and our partner organisations and provides a robust platform to support our services into the future."

While the upgrade was taking place laboratory teams continued processing samples and reporting urgent results using alternative arrangements to ensure patients and clinical teams continued to receive the information they needed.

The project followed months of planning involving pathology, digital, operational and clinical teams from all three Trusts, alongside specialist support from the system supplier.