Connecting Innovative Surgical Documentation to the NHS – Securely
Every time a patient undergoes surgery in the UK, detailed operative notes must be recorded—capturing what was done, how, and by whom. Yet, more than 4.5 million of these records are still handwritten, with another 1.2 million typed using basic word processors, often lacking a consistent format.
MyOpNotes is tackling this problem head-on. Their platform helps surgeons generate high-quality, structured digital notes using terminology that is immediately understood by clinical coders. This not only improves accuracy but also streamlines downstream processes like billing, audit, and analysis.
The Challenge: Delivering NHS-Ready Infrastructure
While the MyOpNotes application was already functional and showing promise, integrating with the NHS introduced a new level of complexity. In a healthcare environment where data privacy, integrity, and resilience are critical, meeting the technical and compliance requirements of NHS Trusts was a significant hurdle.
To overcome this, MyOpNotes partnered with Beaty Consultancy—a cloud and connectivity specialist with deep expertise in healthcare environments.
From MVP to Production-Ready
Like many innovative SaaS companies, MyOpNotes had a strong minimum viable product (MVP) but needed help to make it robust and scalable for NHS use. Beaty Consultancy supported the team in “productionising” the platform by:
- Implementing automated deployment pipelines for faster and safer software releases.
- Enhancing data encryption standards to meet the strict security requirements set by NHS organisations.
- Aligning cloud infrastructure with best practices for availability and compliance.
Bridging the Gap: AWS to NHS Connectivity
One of the most technically demanding elements was establishing secure, reliable connectivity between the MyOpNotes deployment—hosted in AWS—and individual NHS hospital networks.
The NHS provides external partners with limited access through the Health and Social Care Network (HSCN). To communicate over this network, MyOpNotes needed to demonstrate not only secure data handling procedures but also the technical ability to integrate with HSCN infrastructure.
Beaty Consultancy took the lead in this effort, working as an extension of the MyOpNotes team to:
- Identify and engage with a certified HSCN connectivity provider.
- Design and configure secure Virtual Private Network (VPN) tunnels to encrypt all data in transit.
- Ensure that only authorised NHS hospitals and MyOpNotes servers could access or decrypt sensitive information.
Building for Resilience and Compliance
With secure connectivity in place, the next focus was on resilience and disaster recovery. NHS systems cannot afford downtime, and solutions must be designed with no single point of failure.
Beaty Consultancy supported MyOpNotes in developing a comprehensive risk mitigation and incident response strategy, including:
- High-availability configurations across cloud components.
- Data backup and recovery protocols.
- Ongoing monitoring and compliance checks.
This work ensures that NHS Trusts can rely on MyOpNotes not just today, but for the long term.
The Outcome: A Scalable, Secure Solution for the NHS
Thanks to the collaboration between MyOpNotes and Beaty Consultancy, the platform is now capable of delivering secure, accurate, and standardised surgical documentation directly into NHS systems. It’s a major step forward in modernising one of the most critical parts of patient care.
By combining deep healthcare knowledge, cloud expertise, and a commitment to compliance, Beaty Consultancy helped MyOpNotes turn a groundbreaking idea into a reliable, NHS-ready solution—now in the hands of the clinicians and patients who need it most.
