Keeping Updated Ensuring hospital IT systems support ePortfolio

Trainees, assessors and supervisors are increasingly demanding sophisticated technological solutions to support training. In response to this we are working on an integrated ePortfolio system, merging it with ASSET. This will provide new functionality allowing it to be accessed on a variety of devices. However new technology cannot be supported by out of date software such as internet browsers. This includes IE7, currently the most commonly found web-browser in hospitals. There are several issues with the continued use IE7:  IE7 is over 10 years old and cannot support modern functionality in web applications.  As these systems are no longer being supported by Microsoft, they pose a security risk.  Web-based apps that require modern browsers are becoming ever more common in the NHS; NES have already ceased to support users who use IE7 when accessing their ePortfolio and it’s likely many others will follow. Overview

ASSET and ePortfolio are being merged and updated. The new system allows us to move towards mobile technology:  Trainees will be able to upload and monitor information via their mobile devices and tablets  Trainees will not need to be online to fill in forms on mobile devices. The forms will upload later when they can access to the internet.  Quick add reflections will also allow users to add thoughts as they go along, which can be added to at a later date. In order to provide the most modern and reliable system for trainees and supervisors, users will need to be using a modern browser such as IE8+, Firefox or Chrome. The new ePortfolio

We want to provide the best technological solutions for trainees, however this is increasingly hampered by out of date browsers in hospitals. Functionalities such as ‘drag and drop’ personal libraries do not work in IE7. NES have already ceased to support a number of older browsers, which are also no longer supported by the manufacturers, including:  IE7  Apple Safari 5  Apple Safari 6 They support the current and previous major versions of all browsers on a rolling basis. This means that each time a new version of a browser is released, they stop supporting the third most recent version. It is likely the RCPCH will need to follow a similar pattern of support for our ePortfolio system. Supporting Trainees

We are working on a multi-layered approach to ensure that hospitals are ready for the new system, which we are hoping will go live before the end of the year. One of the approaches is asking College Tutors and Heads of Schools to contact IT departments in their trusts, sharing these slides explaining what can be done to prepare for the new RCPCH system and at the same time ensure Foundation and other trainees have the correct software to access NES’ ePortfolio. We are aware that many Trusts will be moving away from using the Windows XP operating system shortly, those Trusts should easily be able to update their computers with IE8+ browsers. Any Trusts who are likely to still be using XP by next year we are recommending all computers have either the XP version of Chrome or Firefox installed as a priority. Both these browsers are free. As we stated this will not only ensure that RCPCH trainees and supervisors can use the system in their hospitals but also ensure Foundation and others who use NES will be supported in their training. It’s essential that the valuable time trainees and consultants put towards supporting training is not wasted trying to fix bugs or issues. Updating browsers What you can do to help

Conclusion The issue of compatibility is not only for ePortfolio or the RCPCH but runs across all trainee groups and will continue to become a more urgent issue. Such apps are becoming an increasingly integral part of the modern work-place and we would like your help in ensuring that the IT systems supporting training are as modern and easy to use as possible. Thank you for your support