The first phase of implementation has covered all operational areas. These include antenatal, foetal medicine, ultrasound, day ward and day care monitoring.

Delivery suite and postnatal midwifery staff record all patient encounters, telephone triage, labour and delivery, and high dependency care. In addition, medical staff are using the system for all operative and assisted deliveries and anaesthetic procedures. 

Further, System C has added a range of features designed to support Scottish users.  These include the production of the Scottish maternity data set, the Scottish Woman's Held Maternity Record, and support for the Scottish Care Information System (SCI store and Gateway), which provides demographic updates and exchange of clinical documentation.

"Introducing a new maternity IT system on such a scale has been a challenging experience affecting the working practices of all clinical staff", said Gordon Dobbie, chair of the Maternity Services IT Project Board. "We were delighted with the level of support System C provided and the way in which they worked as part of a single team with our staff." He added: "We are very happy with the system and are looking forward to reaping the benefits of a truly integrated maternity IT system".

System C's CEO, Ian Denley, (right) commented: "This is our first system deployment in Scotland, and we are delighted that it has been so well received by users. We look forward to working with our colleagues in NHS Scotland to extend its use into community services."

Ayrshire & Arran currently has 300 users registered on the system, including clerical staff, midwives, ultrasonographers and medical staff.

The health board has now embarked on the second phase of the project. This involves implementing Medway Sigma Maternity in its community-based maternity services, covering the whole of Ayrshire and the islands of Arran and Cumbrae. It also includes extending use to the neonatal unit and integrating CTG monitoring and archiving, results reporting and linking to the PACS System in use at the hospital.

The Scottish health board serves seven community hospitals as well as two district general hospitals and a mental health hospital.