Summary Care Record application (SCRa)

An application which allows health and care professionals to view clinical and demographic information.

Summary Care Record application (SCRa) retired

We retired the SCRa on 31 October 2023 for the majority of users. National Care Records Service is the successor to SCRa.

A small number of users will continue to have access to SCRa, those who use the Chargeable Status tab. This group of users will be switched over to NCRS in early 2024.

Health and care staff can access SCRa through the Spine web portal

National data sharing GP Connect and Summary Care Record Additional Information

The temporary changes made to GP Connect and Summary Care Record Additional Information in response to the COVID-19 pandemic will continue beyond the end of the Control of Patient Information (COPI) Notice.

What SCRa is

SCRa is a web based application which allows health and care professionals to view clinical and demographic information using:

Personal Demographics Service (PDS) - including the ability to edit patient demographic information
Summary Care Record (SCR) - core and Additional Information
Child Protection - Information Sharing project (CP-IS)
Female Genital Mutilation - Information Sharing (FGM IS)
Overseas Visitors and Migrants (OVM)
Coronavirus (COVID-19) vaccination event information
COVID-19 exemptions information

SCRa provides a way to view a Summary Care Record (SCR).

SCR can also be accessed using integrated viewers in existing clinical systems, for example Adastra (Advanced Health and Care), Web (EMIS) and SystmOne (TPP).

How to use SCRa

To use SCRa, a user requires a smartcard, passcode and relevant role for authentication.

Connection requirements

To access SCRa, you will need:

a Health and Social Care Network (HSCN) (N3) connection
to have reviewed the data security and protection toolkit (former information governance toolkit)
a smartcard with appropriate Role Based Access Control
local technical configuration including Identity Agent and NHS Credential Management as per Warranted Environment Specification on all user PCs
an assigned privacy officer for alert and audit purposes when viewing SCR
agreed local processes to ensure robust governance - when viewing SCR you will need to follow the Permission to View guidelines
to have planned training for users covering the features your organisation plans to use

Access to SCRa using Internet Explorer (IE) and IE compatibility web browsers is coming to an end.

Find out when you need to switch to a modern browser.

Connecting community pharmacies

NHS Digital is working to make sure all community pharmacies can view Summary Care Records (SCR). See the Summary Care Record (SCR) in community pharmacy page for full details.

Summary Care Record application (SCRa) coronavirus (COVID-19) information

To help the NHS to respond to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, we are providing coronavirus vaccination event information and additional information in Summary Care Records for patients by default, unless they have previously told the NHS that they did not want their information to be shared.

There will also be a temporary change to include COVID-19 codes on the patient’s SCR. Users of the Summary Care Record application and the 1-Click Service will be made aware of specific suspected and confirmed COVID-19 information by a message box displayed on the SCR.

SCRa has been updated to support the process which allows citizens to apply for official proof that, for medical reasons, they’re unable to be vaccinated and/or tested for COVID-19 for medical reasons.

Help to improve access to patient records

We would like to know more about how health and care professionals access patient records, to better understand how we can tailor future developments to meet their needs. You can contact us by emailing [email protected].

Contact details

Please email your enquiries to: [email protected] and reference the SCRa.

Further information

National Care Records Service (NCRS)

The National Care Records Service provides a quick, secure way to access national patient information to improve clinical decision making and healthcare outcomes and it is free to use.

Coronavirus Summary Care Record information

Find out how we're using the Summary Care Record to ensure health and care professionals have the information they need to provide patient care.

Integrating the National Care Records Service for system suppliers

We offer an integration service for systems suppliers for them to launch the National Care Records Service from within their local applications. It's a simpler and less resource intensive method to view the service, and replaces the previous 1-Click Service to view the Summary Care Record Application (SCRa).

Summary Care Record application (SCRa) COVID-19 Exemptions Information

We've updated one of our systems, the Summary Care Record application (SCRa), to record and display essential information about a patient's COVID-19 exemption status to support patients who are exempt on medical grounds to be recorded for exemption from COVID-19 vaccines or COVID-19 vaccines and testing.

Last edited: 21 November 2023 2:21 pm