Apr 28

Written by:
28/04/2011 07:52 

Government Connect is a pan-government programme providing an accredited and secure network between central government and every local authority in England and Wales. During recent months N3 has worked closely with Government Connect to deliver the new Gateway to enable local authorities in England to link up with their counterparts in the NHS so they can share information more effectively and join up service delivery.

The project was piloted successfully across three local authorities. Now, the Department of Health and the Department for Works and Pensions have officially announced that the gateway is live and available for use and are inviting local authorities to link up to the service.
The gateway linking the N3 network and the Government Secure Intranet (GSi) network will allow councils to securely access NHS National Spines services and NHS trust-hosted applications via their existing Government Connect Secure Extranet (GCSX) connection.

The link-up will also enable NHS trust staff to securely access local authority-hosted social care systems through their existing N3 connections.

Here's an example of how the Gateway may be used in practice to improve collaboration between the NHS and Social Services employees: A nurse who works from a local authority building and a social worker who works from an NHS building can now access information hosted by their own organisations via the new gateway both quickly and securely. The link-up will also allow NHS trust staff to securely access local authority-hosted social care systems through their existing N3 connections. Enabling instant access to this data means faster and more effective patient and social care.

The Government Connect Gateway means local authorities and NHS organisations can now share services and applications and create huge opportunities for improved integration of health and social care services.