Health Research Board

WISDOM is a web-based mental health information system which records patient information about people presenting for treatment in inpatient and community-based mental health services. The development and implementation of the WISDOM system is a joint project between the Health Service Executive (HSE) and the Health Research Board (HRB).  The information collected will be used to facilitate delivery of a quality mental health service. 

The system is being developed as a pilot in the Donegal Local Health Area in response to recommendations in the report of the Expert Group on Mental Health Policy, A Vision for Change, (2006) which advised that measures should be put in place to collect data on both inpatient and community-based mental health services.

The pilot phase of WISDOM in Donegal will take about 18 months and will be subject to a stringent evaluation. In parallel with the WISDOM pilot phase, the HSE has embarked on a national scoping exercise to describe an information system that would support and enhance a national mental health service. WISDOM has been developed with national requirements in mind.

WISDOM is used to record, store and retrieve patient information. This information is stored in a centrally located database and includes personal details and records of patient contacts. In addition to maintaining patient records, WISDOM has the ability to generate documents such as appointment letters, schedule appointments, (e.g. with a social worker), and produce reports, (e.g. to identify number of patients receiving a particular treatment type).

The system is accessible via the HSE network by authorised Mental Health Service professionals only. Access to each individual patient’s data is on ‘a need to know’ basis and will be dependent on whether the service provider has previously treated or is currently treating the patient. The system has been designed with security as a priority.

• WISDOM will create detailed, comprehensive records of patients within the mental health services structure. This will improve efficiency by making patient information readily available to both inpatient and community care services in a standard format on a single system.
• WISDOM will provide many practical benefits including the ability to schedule appointments, generate letters, and produce reports. These will save time by reducing duplication of information on different forms and documents.
• WISDOM will facilitate secure sharing of information between healthcare professionals by having a centralised patient database.
  WISDOM will improve communication between healthcare providers, by facilitating inter-team referrals, for example.
• WISDOM will improve communication between the healthcare providers and patients, by assisting in the scheduling of patient appointments and the generation of patient letters.
• WISDOM will increase healthcare providers’ awareness of patients who are poor attendees or those who have not been seen by the Mental Health Service for long periods.
• WISDOM will facilitate access by authorised personnel to real-time patient information for out-of-hours services.
• WISDOM will inform service planning to better respond to the needs of users of mental health services.
• WISDOM will provide information for national reports and research which will inform policy, planning and practice.

The WISDOM Mental Health Information System captures information related to both inpatient and community-based mental health services. In addition to the benefits to service users and providers outlined above, WISDOM information may be used to produce reports and research which will inform policy, planning and practice.

For more information about WISDOM please:

Email WISDOM(at)hrb.ie or phone +353 1 2345148

Or contact:

Anne O’Donohoe, Health Information Manager, Mental Health Research Unit, Health Research Board.

Email: aodonohoe(at)hrb.ie,  Phone: +353 1 2345214.