The BNF (British National Formulary) and the BNF for Children are now available through the Microsoft Common User Interface.

The partnership means that users of NHS Connecting for Health systems will be able to access medical information via the NHS Medical Research Service using the Microsoft Office Research facility.

Users can also download a new Deskbar Search bar to search the guides directly from their desktop.

Dominic Vaughan, BNF publishing director, told E-Health Insider: “This innovative project provides our trusted information directly on the desktop for NHS staff and ensures a key information resource is available to prescribers wherever they might need it.

“For us, this is a great way of getting trusted information available quickly to all NHS users in England, and is an essential move towards making resources available at the point of care. The BNF and the BNF for Children are unique sources of authoritative information for all those involved in prescribing, monitoring, supplying and administering medicines within the NHS.”

In addition, a website has been launched which can be accessed over the N3 NHS network, explaining the different tools and their features and allowing users to try them out safely prior to installing them.

Help and support with downloading and installing the tools to their computers in a simple non-technical way is also available on the website.

Vaughan added: “One of the challenges faced by NHS staff is the amount of information available to them from numerous sources in print and online. MRS addresses this by integrating all the available information and making it much more readily accessible.”

Link

BNF

NHS Medical Research Service (NHS only)