Information and records are one of NHS Forth Valley’s most valuable and essential assets. But they require effective management. Here to help is Amy Cawood in a new role as Corporate Records Manager.
Records management ensures information can be accessed easily and destroyed routinely when no longer needed. It can also help NHS Forth Valley function efficiently on a day-to-day basis as well as fulfilling a number of legal and financial requirements.
Amy explains: “The preservation of corporate records ensures we can be held accountable for our actions and allows us access to an important resource for future decision making. It also helps us preserve our corporate memory for future reference and research.
“Working alongside colleagues in Information Governance, my aim is to help NHS Forth Valley to balance the risks that information presents with the value that it provides. Developing a framework to help gain control of paperwork, shared drives and emails which help staff to locate documents easily and understand the context in which they have been created.”
Amy has worked in roles across the entire spectrum of information management, from university libraries, special collections, information assurance and data protection, to records management and digital preservation.
She added: “The multifaceted nature of my role at NHS Forth Valley makes every day interesting and challenging. One minute I can be writing a new policy or guidance note for staff, and the next I can be appraising boxes of paper records in storage or engaging with staff about the housekeeping of shared drives or developing terminology for a Business Classification Scheme. The work is certainly never boring.”
