Newsroom

Copy link URL Copied.

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

Copy link URL Copied.

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.

Copy link URL Copied.

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