Released on May 5, 2015
Saskatchewan patients and health providers are now benefitting from a new, electronic integrated public health information system. “Panorama” allows public health care providers to manage vaccine inventories and immunizations, and enhances their ability to deliver services to residents.Rural and Remote Health Minister Greg Ottenbreit today joined representatives from eHealth Saskatchewan and Regina Qu’Appelle Health Region for the official launch of Panorama.
“Panorama is a standardized, accurate and confidential system now available to public health professionals to do their day-to-day work and to provide improved services to our residents,” Ottenbreit said. “Introducing this modern system is part of our ongoing efforts to deliver health services to our residents in a more efficient, streamlined and co-ordinated manner.”
The vaccine inventory module of Panorama was implemented in March 2014 and the immunizations module in February 2015. The new system offers a series of enhancements that are directly benefitting patients. For example, each person who receives public health services in Saskatchewan will now have a single, confidential client record, no matter where they receive those services in the province.
In the future, Panorama will have three additional modules: communicable disease investigations, communicable disease outbreaks, and family health. When fully implemented, Panorama will replace two aging provincial public health systems (the Saskatchewan Immunization Management System and the integrated Public Health Information System).
“Immunization is safe and important and saves lives by preventing serious diseases,” Regina Qu’Appelle Health Region Medical Health Officer, Population and Public Health Services Dr. Tania Diener said. “Panorama is a tool that helps public health do their job by providing a complete record of vaccines provided in Saskatchewan.”
“Panorama can be accessed by public health wherever a client presents and allows for more timely care,” Regina Qu’Appelle Health Region Population and Public Health Services, Public Health Nursing Manager Morag Granger said. “It also assists staff in determining immunizations the clients are due for, as well as future immunizations.”
The Ministry of Health partnered with e-Health Saskatchewan to develop and implement Panorama throughout the province.
“We were pleased to lead the information technology portion of this project,” eHealth Saskatchewan CEO Susan Antosh said. “The immunization and vaccine inventory modules help support improved patient care by making patient and vaccine information available electronically to the health care team.”
Saskatchewan’s Panorama is part of the pan-Canadian Panorama initiative funded through Canada Health Infoway. Five other jurisdictions are in the process of implementing Panorama: Quebec, British Columbia, Yukon, Ontario and Manitoba.
More information on the province’s Panorama is available at www.ehealthsask.ca/panorama.
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For more information, contact:
Tyler McMurchy
Health
Regina
Phone: 306-787-4083
Email: tmcmurchy@health.gov.sk.ca
Anne Lindemann
Regina Qu’Appelle Health Region
Regina
Phone: 306-766-0889
Email: Anne.Lindemann@rqhealth.ca
Lisa Adam
eHealth Saskatchewan
Regina
Phone: 306-337-0976
Email: lisa.adam@ehealthsask.ca