Plans To Computerise NHS, Costs Thrice

Programs and schemes initiated to computerize NHS with £20 billion is becoming late than scheduled by about two and half years.

‘Plans were begun previous year to make the medical records electronically for 50 million NHS patients, but this will not still be started until 2007 or 2008’ – says the health minister, Lord Warner.

NHS programme for IT (NPfIT) really costs more than three times than the previously said £6.2 billion – reported Lord Warner.

This is the world’s biggest civil information technology scheme, exclaimed Lord Warner. So that provisions like centralized medical records, picking appointments from a choice of dates and locations for people, locating prescriptions for people through e-mail, lessening gaps between GPs (30,000) in about 300 England hospitals.

To be more confidential about people details, Doctors' leader and British Medical Association's family doctors said patient must be asked for their permission before details were computerised placed on the electronic database.

Some parts of the programme were going well and good but some others need more improvements and speed.

Pilot study regarding the National Care Record plan in electronic database will be carried out the following year, which involves major diagnoses, operations, recent test results, current medications and allergies and recent records about medical staffs.

Governments opted for ‘informed consent’ approach rather than ‘assumed consent’ approach for people to be happy to have their details stored electronically.

Modern technology may be a used version for doctors who practice, but it looks to threaten patients and publics confidentiality more – says Dr Hamish Meldrum, chairman of the BMA's GPs committee.