Kam Sidhu , CIO at Tees , Esk and Wear Valleys NHS Foundation Trust , tells us about their digital strategy through the pandemic and beyond
TEWV NHS
Kam Sidhu , CIO at Tees , Esk and Wear Valleys NHS Foundation Trust , tells us about their digital strategy through the pandemic and beyond
Kam Sidhu is the Chief Information Officer at Tees , Esk and Wear Valleys NHS Foundation Trust , a mental health and learning disability trust in the north-east of England . The trust ' s services cover adult mental health , children and young people ’ s services ( CAMHS ), mental health services for older people and forensic services .
Sidhu ' s department broadly has three areas : business intelligence and reporting ; development and technical which includes everything related to IT and management of systems ( including delivering computers and answering service desk calls ); and lastly the delivery arm , covering projects , compliance and training .
The trust is in the midst of rewriting its digital strategy , with a key objective to fully exploit the technology it already has . " We ' re using MS Teams for example , but we probably only use a very limited functionality , and we need to fully maximise its benefits " Sidhu says . She emphasises the importance of not focusing purely on new technology , " because often you get a mismatch between what the organisation is ready to adopt versus what it thinks it should adopt ."
Investing in the team is also key , making sure there are no gaps in people ' s skills and knowledge , and ensuring they have the tech they need to build a digital workforce for the future . " The third element is striving for
264 August 2021