Enabling Frimley’s Epic EPR launch with speech recognition
Frimley Health speech‑enables EPR with Dragon Medical One to improve workflows and reduce document turnaround times.
Helping clinicians do more, with speech recognition
By speech‑enabling its new EPR, the Frimley Health NHS Foundation Trust is making sure that the price of digital transformation isn’t a drop in staff productivity.
Challenge
Frimley Health NHS Foundation Trust was replacing over 200 legacy systems with a single electronic patient record (EPR) platform from Epic. The Trust was keen to ensure their large‑scale digital transformation project didn’t lead to a drop in workforce productivity.
Solution
Frimley speech‑enabled their new EPR with Dragon Medical One and chose Nuance for its strong integration and proven track record with Epic. The Trust opted to implement speech recognition prior to their Epic go‑live, enabling staff to become familiar with the technology while also improving workflows and reducing document turnaround times.
Results
In just 3 months, following launch of Epic, there were over 600 Dragon active users. The Trust has accelerated documentation turnaround times and replaced their incumbent outsourced transcription service, saving approximately £20.7k per month.
Background
Frimley Health NHS Foundation Trust went live with their Epic EPR in June 2022, replacing more than 200 legacy systems and paper records with a single electronic patient record. This new EPR is designed to advance the Trust’s digital capabilities, helping Frimley Health to deliver more integrated, efficient and effective care
Frimley’s ambitious digital transformation project is supported by Nuance’s voice‑driven solutions. Their Epic EPR is speech‑enabled with Dragon Medical One, enabling clinicians to capture notes directly in the EPR and navigate using their voice.
In the past, the Trust has relied on outsourced transcription services and handwritten reports for document and letter creation. This process worked, but it was slow and inefficient. Paper records had to be scanned, then entered into electronic systems. Letters had to be typed up and sent out to patients and GPs. With the move to an Epic EPR, the Trust wanted to keep its staff using their voices—but it also wanted to ensure they could create documents and letters in a much more efficient, real‑time way.
Turnaround measured in minutes rather than weeks
“In my practice, letter turnaround is now measured in minutes rather than weeks and every letter is sent on the same day it is created” – Dr Graham Smith, CCIO, Frimley Health NHS Foundation Trust.
As Frimley’s CCIO, Dr Graham Smith succinctly puts it, ‘clinicians are not touch typists’, and by speech‑enabling its new EPR, the Trust is making sure that the price of digital transformation isn’t a drop in staff productivity. Given the large‑scale change already facing staff and to ease the transition, the Trust decided to implement speech recognition prior to the Epic EPR go‑live. “What this will do is give our clinicians the ability to use speech recognition with current letter writing processes and document creation processes… and be confident that voice recognition will work when we switch to Epic” says Dr Smith.
Dragon Medical One is proving popular with Frimley’s clinicians. In just 3 months, following the launch of Epic, there were over 600 active users. The new voice‑driven workflows have improved the Trust’s turnaround times for clinical documentation. It is also helping the Trust to save money as they have been able to replace their incumbent outsourced transcription service, saving approximately £20.7k per month.
Unmatched outcomes
£20.7k
per month saved from outsourced transcription
600+
active users just 3 months after Epic EPR launch
Looking ahead
Frimley is excited to explore additional mobile options with Nuance, supporting more flexible workflows. Frimley’s clinicians already have the option to pair Dragon Medical One with the PowerMic Mobile app, enabling a smartphone to be used as a dictation microphone. A future ambition for the Trust is to use speech recognition embedded natively within Epic’s mobile apps.
Frimley chose Nuance because of its proven track record of integration with Epic. This gave the Trust assurance that it could support its digital vision. Dr Smith says: “Our main reason for choosing Nuance was their proven track record with Epic. They have examples of very successful implementation, not just in the UK, but internationally.”