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Wrightington, Wigan and Leigh Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust (WWL) and Altera Digital Health have unveiled the results of a digital transformation that has optimised the Acute Abdomen Pathway. By embedding National Emergency Laparotomy Audit (NELA) guidance into WWL’s Altera Sunrise™ Electronic Patient Record (EPR) platform, the trust has achieved significant improvements in patient outcomes, operational efficiency and quality of care—earning its first-ever Best Practice Tariff (BPT) for emergency laparotomy.

The digital transformation achieved significant improvements across several key metrics, including:

-100% compliance with Acute Abdomen Pathway documentation standards
-100% completion of Age and Complex Medicine reviews and Critical Care Outreach Team (CCOT) reviews for high-risk patients
-76% of urgent CT scans reported within one hour, up from 41%
-Eligibility for the Best Practice Tariff (BPT) for the first time, securing ongoing funding

Transforming patient care

WWL’s Acute Abdomen Pathway was previously hindered by a paper-based system, underutilisation and inconsistent communication, leading to delays and potential variations in patient care. To address this, the trust sought a digitally enabled solution to align with national guidance, enhance patient outcomes and optimise clinician workflows.

“The digital transformation of our Acute Abdomen Pathway within the Sunrise EPR platform has demonstrated improved compliance with best practice documentation and guidance, prompting the clinician to follow the protocol based on the patient’s presentation,” said Petro Bekker, Chief Nurse Information Officer and Associate Director of Clinical Informatics at WWL. “By streamlining critical processes and making them intuitive for clinicians, we’ve seen tangible improvements in patient care, from faster CT reporting to comprehensive geriatric reviews.”

Streamlining clinical workflows

Leveraging the flexibility of the Sunrise EPR platform, the solution now provides contextual decision support, automatically presenting NELA guidance and actions at the point of care. It also enables streamlined one-click ordering for CTs, integrates NELA mortality risk scoring for early identification, enhances radiology integration to prioritise urgent scans, and ensures automated end-to-end pathway coverage through referrals to specialist teams like Age and Complex Medicine and Critical Care Outreach.

Dr. Andrew Starkie, Accident & Emergency Consultant at WWL, added, “Embedding the pathway into our ED electronic patient record has substantially improved how we assess patients with an acute abdomen, enabling better risk stratification and more effective organisation of ongoing care.”

Mark Hutchinson, Executive Vice President, Altera Digital Health (UK & EMEA), commented: “We are incredibly proud to partner with Wrightington, Wigan and Leigh Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust on their digital transformation journey. Their success in leveraging the flexibility of the Sunrise EPR platform to embed NELA guidance is a powerful example of how a configurable digital health solution adds value. This approach streamlines workflows, maximises productivity and crucially enhances patient safety and outcomes, empowering trusts to drive impactful, tailored change.”

Future plans include expanding the NELA nurse role to enhance recovery and patient feedback. The initiative has already won “Best Audit and Quality Improvement” at the Trust’s Clinical Audit Best Practice event.

About Wrightington, Wigan and Leigh Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust
Wrightington, Wigan and Leigh Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust (WWL) is a major Acute and Community Foundation Trust in the North West of England, within the Greater Manchester footprint. WWL serve a local population of 329,300 and provide specialist services to a much wider regional, national and international catchment area from five main sites: Royal Albert Edward Infirmary, Wrightington Hospital, Leigh Infirmary, Thomas Linacre Centre and Boston House. Community services are provided from a range of locations across the Borough.

About Altera Digital Health
Altera Digital Health is a global healthcare IT leader. With more than 30 years of experience, we develop technology to bring next-level healthcare within reach. Our approach to solutions provides a fast, flexible and clinically driven roadmap towards digital maturity across integrated care systems.

With more than 2,700 hospitals in more than 15 countries, our solutions support healthcare providers, governments and military institutions around the world. By keeping the human user at the centre of our design methodology, we are supporting caregivers and helping patients meet and exceed their wellness goals. Together, with our clients, we’re driving a new era of healthcare. To learn more, visit uk.alterahealth.com.

Media Contact:

Jodie Cheetham (on behalf of Altera Digital Health)
Jodie@silver-buck.com
07967 136010

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Altera Digital Health has been awarded 10-year contracts by Stockport NHS Foundation Trust and Tameside and Glossop Integrated Care NHS Foundation Trust to implement the Altera Electronic Patient Record (EPR) platform. This major investment marks a significant milestone in both trusts’ digital transformation journeys and will support improvements to patient flow across Greater Manchester, aligning with the region’s shared ambition for a fully digitally enabled future.

The new systems will provide better visibility of patient information, smoother transitions between hospital and community services, and a safer, more coordinated patient experience across the region, as well as provide the platform for future innovation, including the ability to embed AI capabilities directly into the clinical pathway to further enhance safety, efficiency and the quality of care.

By replacing multiple siloed health IT systems, legacy patient administration tools and core clinical systems, the Altera EPR will give clinicians a single, real‑time and accurate source of patient information supported by clinical decision tools. Currently, clinical teams must log into several systems to gather essential data, a process that consumes valuable time and increases the risk of duplication or inconsistencies.

The new integrated EPRs will enable staff to view and update the patient record at the point of care, which will help deliver significant time savings, enhance the reliability of information and strengthen patient safety across the organisations. By consolidating care into one unified platform, the trusts are expected to achieve substantial efficiency gains and free up clinical staff to spend more time on direct patient care.

The contract awards follow a rigorous procurement process undertaken with extensive clinical and operational involvement to confirm the system meets both of the trusts’ immediate needs and long‑term ambitions.

Stockport NHS Foundation Trust and Tameside and Glossop Integrated Care NHS Foundation Trust become the latest NHS trusts to select Altera’s EPR platform, following the successful recent go‑live at Queen Victoria Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, which is already reporting early benefits for staff and supporting improved patient care. With this announcement, the Altera EPR is projected to support care for more than 10 million patients across the UK. The implementation also expands Altera’s footprint across Greater Manchester to cover five out of its six acute NHS trusts.

Peter Nuttall, Director of Informatics, for both trusts commented: “I’m pleased we’ve selected Altera as our partner and can begin implementing the system to streamline workflows, connect care, and make important efficiency gains for our clinical staff. The implementation of a new EPR is a huge programme of work, which will involve all clinical services and provide a strong digital foundation for future care delivery and innovation. It’s a defining moment for both organisations, which is why we’re excited to get underway and provide clinical teams with up-to-date patient information at their fingertips so they can deliver quality care.”  

Mark Hutchinson, Executive Vice President at Altera Digital Health (UK & EMEA), said: “Partnering with Stockport NHS Foundation Trust and Tameside and Glossop Integrated Care NHS Foundation Trust on these important programmes reflects our shared commitment to delivering safer, more connected care through a modern, clinically led EPR across Greater Manchester. We will bring the full weight of our experience supporting NHS trusts, building on our recent successful implementations across the UK to help the trusts rapidly advance their digital maturity. Each of their decisions to select the Altera EPR, which has already achieved HIMSS EMRAM Stage 7 in other parts of North West England, demonstrates their individual commitment to building a strong digital foundation for future care delivery and innovation.”

Media Contact: 

Jodie Cheetham, Silver Buck (on behalf of Altera Digital Health)
jodie@silver-buck.com
07967 136010

About Altera Digital Health

Altera Digital Health is a global healthcare IT leader. With more than 30 years of experience, we develop technology to bring next-level healthcare within reach. Our approach to solutions provides a fast, flexible and clinically driven roadmap towards digital maturity across integrated care systems.

With more than 2,700 hospitals in more than 15 countries, our solutions support healthcare providers, governments and military institutions around the world. By keeping the human user at the centre of our design methodology, we are supporting caregivers and helping patients meet and exceed their wellness goals. Together, with our clients, we’re driving a new era of healthcare. To learn more, visit uk.alterahealth.com.

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Health IT leader to highlight solution enhancements driving stronger provider satisfaction, data quality and revenue integrity

NIAGARA FALLS, N.Y. – March 3, 2026 – Altera Digital Health (booth #4431), a global health IT leader, will exhibit at the Health Information Management Systems Society (HIMSS) 2026 Global Conference in Las Vegas, Nevada, March 9–12, 2026. Altera subject matter experts will deliver several educational theater sessions on key topics such as artificial intelligence (AI) best practices, provider burnout, patient empowerment and financial resilience. Attendees are invited to join an Altera happy hour and visit the booth throughout the week to receive demos and learn about new solutions, services and product updates. Vice President of Policy and Public Affairs Leigh Burchell will also be honored at the event as a Policy Influencer as part of the 2026 HIMSS Changemaker in Health Awards.

Ben Scharfe, Executive Vice President for AI, will provide crucial guidance on maximizing AI’s value while managing new risks in his theater presentation, “AI unbound: Agentic workflows and deregulated risk,” on Wednesday, March 11 at 1:00–1:10 p.m. Additional sessions will address key drivers and top challenges for health systems, hospitals and provider practices. Highlights from Altera’s full theater schedule include:

• Sunrise
  • From burnout to breakthrough. Laura Kohlhagen and Beth Godwin will discuss how interoperable insights and ambient documentation drive more focused clinician-patient interactions.
  • Turning denials into revenue protection initiatives. Kelly Johnson will highlight the need to connect revenue cycle processes to smarter workflows and sustainable operations.
• Paragon
  • The year of the nurse: Why it matters more than ever. Geoff Nau will underscore why supporting nurses is critical to care quality, workforce stability and the future of healthcare.
  • Practical AI uses for community hospitals. Hass Saad will share real-world AI use cases for community hospitals to improve efficiency, reduce staff burden and deliver measurable results.
• TouchWorks EHR
  • Small steps become giant leaps. Bob Taylor will discuss how AI-powered tools within the patient chart can create a seamless provider experience.
  • Clinical documentation that works. Taylor will explore how ambient AI notes with automated forms and workflow agents can reduce documentation burden and improve provider efficiency.
• CareInMotion
  • From raw data to trusted intelligence, where care happens. Julie Greer and Corrine Micklos will share how healthcare organizations can transform data into their most valuable asset.
• Altera Cloud
  • When systems heal themselves. Tim O’Brien will discuss how AI-driven self-healing improves availability and user confidence.
  • The performance drift problem. Manny Payton will share what can happen when small performance changes start adding up—and how we reverse them.
• Altera Managed Services
  • A proven, scalable, expert led IT partner for empowered healthcare. Jeff Young and Freddie Sanchez will unpack the advantages of an expert-led IT partner.
  • Exposing cyber vulnerability: What healthcare leaders need to know (and do next). Young and Sanchez will underscore the need for comprehensive cybersecurity insights.
• Ventus
  • Your contracts are talking. AI helps you listen. Michelle Durbin will discuss how organizations can turn payer contract complexity into clarity—and leverage.

Additionally, HIMSS will recognize Leigh Burchell for her years of transformative leadership in health IT policy and public affairs at the Public Policy Luncheon on Tuesday, March 10. In addition to her role at Altera, Burchell is currently in her second term as Chair of HIMSS’s Electronic Health Record Association (EHRA). Through these and additional leadership roles, Burchell has been a credible, consistent voice for EHR vendors in federal and state policy discussions, helping lawmakers and regulators understand the critical role that software developers play in supporting health data liquidity, innovation and patient empowerment while also advocating for practical, reasonable timelines.

“Healthcare is at a pivotal moment. While organizations are navigating significant headwinds like staffing shortages and cost constraints, AI and other advanced technologies are now demonstrating the ability to really move the needle on longstanding challenges,” said Marcus Perez, President, Altera Digital Health. “Human connection is at the heart of healthcare, and HIMSS is the perfect forum to connect with our clients and partners on critical issues. We look forward to demonstrating how Altera solutions and services are supporting the human moments that matter most for patients, providers and their communities.”

HIMSS attendees are welcome to join an in-booth happy hour on Tuesday, March 10 at 4:30–5:30 p.m. to meet Altera solution and subject matter experts and network with fellow attendees while enjoying complimentary beverages and light fare.

Learn more about Altera’s presence at HIMSS here and stop by booth #4431 to learn how Altera is enabling clinicians, empowering patients and transforming care organizations.

About Altera Digital Health

A global healthcare IT leader, Altera Digital Health develops and elevates technology to bring next-level healthcare within reach. Altera’s approach to our solutions is changing the way healthcare is delivered—we see the summit of what healthcare can be, but rather than total transformation, we’re focused on helping organizations take the steps they need to get there. Altera designs digital health services that lead healthcare to a higher place, while we guide those we partner with, all along the way. To learn more, visit www.alterahealth.com.

Media Contact

For Altera Digital Health
AlteraMediaRelations@alterahealth.com

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Worcestershire Acute Hospitals NHS Trust has further advanced its digital maturity by successfully going live with Altera Digital Health’s ePrescribing and Medicine Administration (ePMA).  Disparate and paper-based workflows have been digitised and standardised across 56 inpatient wards and urgent care areas spanning the trust’s three hospital sites, significantly reducing variations in prescribing practice to enhance patient safety.

ePMA is the latest phase in the trust’s integrated EPR programme, having taken a modular, flexible approach. Harry de Voil, Chief Information Officer for Allied Health and Nursing at Worcestershire Acute Hospitals, said: “This latest ePMA go-live is an important step on our digital maturity journey.  Not only is it key to driving efficiency, quality and patient flow improvements, but it is also a key enabler for other aspects of our EPR and patient safety enhancements further on in the journey, such as closed-loop e-prescribing.”

The system has streamlined the electronic discharge process by ensuring discharge medication orders are immediately available for dispensing, helping to avoid delays resulting from the transfer of the paper medication chart from ward to pharmacy.

For the clinicians, it is saving time producing electronic discharge summaries (EDS) for primary and community care providers.  Prior to go-live, teams had to manually transcribe the prescriptions into the EDS. But now, the information is automatically pulled across from the solution, enhancing patient safety, improving patient flow and enabling clinicians to focus more on direct care.

Clinical decision support and alerts, such as allergy and interaction warnings, have been introduced based on the patient’s record and the medication being ordered, which is designed to support patient safety, reduce medication errors and improve adherence to evidence-based guidelines.

The system is also designed to eliminate patient safety risks and inefficiencies associated with handwritten drug charts being lost, illegible or transcribed incorrectly.  Further efficiencies are being released on the wards with instant access to the complete patient’s record and easier identification of missed doses to ensure timely care. The solution also incorporates a decision-support tool for prescribing, adding further enhancements for patient safety.

Faiza Khan, Chief Pharmacist at the Trust, said: “Thanks to the huge amount of planning and preparation work in the weeks and months leading up to launching ePMA and the hard work and professionalism of all the teams involved, the phased roll out across the Trust over a four-day period went really well.

“In the first week alone, we have seen more than 800 patients transcribed from paper to the Sunrise ePMA solution, and more than 23,000 medicines have been recorded as administered. The rollout has been supported by more than 1,000 hours of on the ward support from members of the digital team.

“We’re already seeing the benefits in terms of patient safety and efficiencies for staff—including drug chart legibility, overdue drugs being clearly highlighted, reduced transcription errors and improved efficiency thanks to drug charts being readily available.

“Work will now continue to embed the system, working closely with clinical teams to incorporate feedback to further enhance the system’s safety and user-friendliness.”

Staff engagement was high throughout the implementation with positive attendance at weekly upscaling sessions, regular scenario-based training and user acceptance meetings.  Over 100 digital champions were also enlisted to support staff and ensure a smooth transition to the new way of working.

Mark Hutchinson, Executive Vice President at Altera Digital Health (UK & EMEA), said: “I would like to extend my congratulations to Worcestershire Acute Hospitals NHS Trust for achieving another successful milestone on their EPR roadmap.  They should be very proud because the immediate and longer-term benefits of ePMA are game changing when it comes to supporting safer and faster patient care.  I’m pleased to report that this go-live means 100% of our UK clients are live with ePMA.  The Worcestershire team excelled throughout the implementation, and it was great to be part of that experience. Worcestershire’s approach to lay a solid EPR foundation and build on that with modular rollouts such as this one places them in a strong position for long-term digital maturity and integrated care.  We’ll be supporting them in this endeavour as they expand the functionality of their integrated EPR further.”

Media Contact:

Jodie Cheetham, Silver Buck (on behalf of Altera Digital Health)
jodie@silver-buck.com
07967 136010

About Altera Digital Health 

Altera Digital Health is a global healthcare IT leader. With more than 30 years of experience, we develop technology to bring next-level healthcare within reach. Our approach to solutions provides a fast, flexible and clinically driven roadmap towards digital maturity across integrated care systems.

With more than 2,700 hospitals in more than 15 countries, our solutions support healthcare providers, governments and military institutions around the world. By keeping the human user at the centre of our design methodology, we are supporting caregivers and helping patients meet and exceed their wellness goals. Together, with our clients, we’re driving a new era of healthcare. To learn more, visit uk.alterahealth.com.

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Altera Digital Health, a leading provider of electronic patient record (EPR) solutions in the UK, has announced a new partnership with PC PAL to enhance paediatric care within its Sunrise™ EPR system – with Maidstone and Tunbridge Wells NHS Trust becoming the first NHS trust to implement advanced growth charting as part of this innovation.

Through the integration of GrowthXP, PC PAL’s world-class paediatric growth charting application, Sunrise users in the UK can access an augmented depth of data to support accurate growth monitoring, diagnosis, and treatment planning. Maidstone and Tunbridge Wells NHS Trust’s adoption of this functionality highlights how the flexibility and interoperability of Sunrise enables trusts to tailor solutions to meet specific clinical needs, seamlessly embedding specialist tools into everyday workflows.

The solution provides an extensive library of growth references, including local UK standards, as well as data covering over 50 rare disorders. By embedding within Sunrise, Altera is extending its commitment to equip paediatric specialists with advanced, clinically validated tools that improve both patient care and efficiency.

Dr. Shehriyar Khan, Clinical Information Officer for Women, Children and Sexual Health, Maidstone and Tunbridge Wells NHS Trust said: “The transition from paper-based to digital growth charts has revolutionised the way healthcare professionals at MTW track and monitor growth. Replacing traditional paper-based charts with fully digitised charts has improved accuracy, accessibility, and standardisation, enabling our healthcare teams to make more informed decisions and provide better care. There has been overwhelmingly positive feedback from users after transitioning to the digital growth charts, leading to improved efficiency and productivity in the clinical environment.”

Mark Hutchinson, Executive Vice President, Altera Digital Health (UK & EMEA), said:

“We are delighted to bring world-leading growth charting capabilities into Sunrise, and proud to see Maidstone and Tunbridge Wells NHS Trust lead the way with our first UK implementation. This achievement demonstrates the capability and flexibility of Sunrise, enabling NHS organisations to integrate best-in-class resources that directly enhance patient outcomes.”

This collaboration reflects the shared vision of delivering innovative, evidence-based digital health solutions that empower clinicians and improve outcomes for children. Maidstone and Tunbridge Wells NHS Trust’s pioneering work sets a strong example for paediatric care across the NHS.

About Altera Digital Health

Altera Digital Health is a global healthcare IT leader. With more than 30 years of experience, we develop technology to bring next-level healthcare within reach. Our approach to solutions provides a fast, flexible and clinically driven roadmap towards digital maturity across integrated care systems.

With more than 2,700 hospitals in more than 15 countries, our solutions support healthcare providers, governments and military institutions around the world. By keeping the human user at the centre of our design methodology, we are supporting caregivers and helping patients meet and exceed their wellness goals. Together, with our clients, we’re driving a new era of healthcare. To learn more, visit uk.alterahealth.com.

About Maidstone and Tunbridge Wells NHS Trust

Maidstone and Tunbridge Wells NHS Trust is a large acute hospital trust in the south east of England. Its core catchment areas are Maidstone and Tunbridge Wells and their surrounding boroughs, and it operates from two main clinical sites: Maidstone Hospital and Tunbridge Wells Hospital at Pembury, as well as Fordcombe Hospital which the Trust acquired in October 2024.

The Trust employs a team of 8,000 staff and provides a full range of general hospital services, and some areas of specialist complex care, to around 600,000 people living in the south of west Kent and the north of East Sussex. It also provides outpatient clinics and specialist care, including stroke and sexual health services, to a wider population at locations across the region. The Trust provides cancer services to around 2 million people in Kent, Medway and East Sussex, via the Kent Oncology Centre at Maidstone Hospital, and at Kent and Canterbury Hospital in Canterbury.

About PC PAL

PC PAL is a leading, global, medical software developer providing decision-support modules for integration into medical record systems, notably the child growth charting tool, GrowthXP. Our solutions are used in 20% of the top 100 ranked hospitals in the world.

Media Contact

Jodie Cheetham (on behalf of Altera Digital Health)
Jodie@silver-buck.com
M: 07967 136010