Click below for the survey report and the survey data pack:
Key messages
Across all three years we have been conducting the Annual Survey of Integrated Care, the importance of shared care records in enabling care coordination and continuity in complex and pressured systems, has been stated over and over again.
The question we asked in the Annual Survey 2025 was:
Are shared electronic care records having a positive impact on people’s experience of care coordination and continuity where they are in place?
How do they change the way care teams are able to work together?
We changed our approach to data collection slightly this year in response to feedback from participants in previous Annual Surveys and to explore the topic in richer detail.
We conducted a short survey, open to anyone who had access to a link shared via our network. The survey asked people to share their lived experience of SECRs. At the end of the survey, they were asked to share their contact details if they wished to participate in a follow-up online focus group.
The IFIC team convened seven focus groups to explore the themes arising from the survey in more detail.
When undertaking the analysis of the collected data, we clustered respondents into four groups:
- People at the centre of care and informal carers
- Providers
- Policymakers
- Researchers
A total of 136 valid survey responses were received, and 22 participants took part in the focus groups.
1. People at the centre of care
We asked people at the centre of care and informal carers if the health and care workers they interact with have access to SECRs and 59 per cent of them said this was the case always or most of the time. Fewer, 48 per cent, experienced these records being shared across organisational boundaries.
Of those who did experience records shared across organisational boundaries, 79 per cent said this led to better care coordination. The reasons they gave for this better experience of coordination included:
- Better communication between professionals
- Greater clarity for them as the person at the centre of care
- Better experience of joined up care
- Involvement in decision-making and more agency
- Reduced duplication including being asked for the same information by different providers
“In my experience using healthcare services, I’ve definitely benefited from shared electronic care records. When speaking with healthcare professionals, particularly my GP or a specialist, it’s clear that having access to my medical history enables them to provide more efficient and effective care. It also helps avoid inconsistencies and ensures better continuity in the follow-up“
Person at the centre of care
2. Providers
This group included health and social care workers and service managers in the public, private, for-profit and the not-for-profit sectors. 76 per cent of the providers said they had access to SECRs always or most of the time but only 46 per cent experienced these as being shared across organisational boundaries.
Of those who did experience records shared across organisational boundaries, 96 per cent said this led to better experience of coordinating care and providing continuity. The reasons they gave for this included:
- Better communication between professionals
- Which leads to better clinical decision-making including better risk management
- Reduces duplication of clinical and administrative work
- Enables coordinated and continuous care
This group were less likely to mention involving people in decision-making and giving them greater agency in their own care.
This group were also asked how they could promote the use of SECRs and the most frequent response was sharing experience of its use with others. Another strategy was to get involved in the development and improvement of SECRs.
“I can read about a client’s history before meeting them which comforts the client as they don’t have to share their story over and over. This is especially important in the field of mental health. I can also see what other service providers are doing with them while I am working with the client. This allows for me to treat the client in a way that supports other work that they are doing. Finally, my notes and reports can be seen by others so that those who follow up with the client after me can support a smooth transition.“
Provider
3. Policymakers
Policymakers at national and regional levels, have a role in creating the conditions that allow SECRs to scale and spread. 66 per cent of policymakers said the providers in the system they oversaw had access to SECRs always or most of the time. 67 per cent of policymakers experienced these as being shared across organisational boundaries, a higher level than either people at the centre of care or providers.
Of those who did experience records shared across organisational boundaries, 75 per cent said this led to better experience of coordinating care and providing continuity. The reasons they gave for this were much more distributed than other groups. Among the varied reasons SECRs contribute to better integration were:
- Better continuity and coordination
- More accessible information
- Reduces duplication of clinical and administrative work
- Timely information
- Better communication between professionals
This group were also less likely to mention involving people in decision-making and giving them greater agency in their own care than people at the centre of care.
This group were also asked how they could promote the use of SECRs and the most frequent response was to get involved in the development and improvement of SECRs. Policymakers also saw themselves in having a role in ensuring investment in SECRs, enabling co-design and creating a promoting legislative and regulatory environment.
“Allows regional divisions to be overcome by enabling citizens to receive care throughout the entire country (and in the future, Europe) by ensuring complete information to the physician.“
Policymaker
4. Researchers
Researchers have a role in sharing the lessons learnt about SECRs implementation, what works and what does not. 57 per cent of the researchers said the providers in the system they research and evaluate had access to SECRs always or most of the time. Only 30 per cent of researchers experienced these as being shared across organisational boundaries, the lowest level of any of the four groups responding to the survey.
Of those who did experience records shared across organisational boundaries, a low number to start with, 78 per cent said this led to better experience of coordinating care and providing continuity. The reasons they gave for this were similar to other groups. Among the varied reasons SECRs contribute to better integration were:
- Better continuity and coordination
- More accessible information
- Reduces duplication of clinical and administrative work
- Timely information
- Better communication between professionals
This group were also less likely to mention involving people in decision-making and giving them greater agency in their own care than people at the centre of care.
When asked how they could promote the use of SECRs, this group’s most frequent response was to get involved in the development and improvement of SECRs. Researchers also saw themselves in having a role in promoting inter-operability of information systems, training and capacity-building for all stakeholders involved in implementation and supporting the development of enabling strategies and policies.
“Critical information from patients and caregivers is shared amongst providers. In research we have seen this improve care coordination, reduce patient and caregiver burden (not wanting to “re tell” their stories), and prevent or address medication errors. Unfortunately, this is not applied consistently. Sharing records with specialists seems to be the most problematic and least common.“
Researcher
Contact us
To discuss the results and methods of our survey or to learn more about our work, contact Niamh Lennox-Chhugani at nlennoxchhugani@integratedcarefoundation.org
