PCT seeks to align SCR and SystmOne consent models
The last of the six primary care trusts due to take part in the early adopter programme for the NHS Summary Care Record has insisted that the data sharing model for the SCR and its main GP system supplier should be the same. South West Essex PCT is the last of the PCTs named as […]
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DH backs away from 084 telephone ban
The Department of Health has no immediate plans to ban use of 084 numbers in the NHS, health minister Ben Bradshaw has indicated. In a letter to Rob Marris MP, the health minister gave no indication that the use of such numbers by GP practices and organisations such as NHS Direct would be prohibited. Instead […]
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Different consent models for coaching services
The first primary care trust to use a telephone support service from private contractor Health Dialog has backed the use of an opt-out consent model after another PCT ran into a row about a similar service. NHS Norfolk (formerly Norfolk PCT) has been using Health Dialog’s telephone-based health coaching service since March 2006. When Wirral […]
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Patient’s awareness of treatment choices stalls
The latest national patient choice survey shows little growth in awareness of the government’s flagship policy on choice with less than one in two patients recalling being offered a choice of hospital.
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Slight increase in satisfaction with PBC data quality
GPs have become marginally more satisfied with the quality of the data they receive for practice-based commissioning over the past six months, although more than 35% are still dissatisfied, according to a Department of Health survey. The DH’s latest quarterly poll of 1,891 GP practices, carried out between June and August 2008, found that 16% […]
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One in ten hospital episodes miscoded
Almost one in ten hospital episodes is incorrectly coded, according to an analysis carried out by the Audit Commission. The spending watchdog’s analysis of more than 50,000 episodes of care, equating to approximately £73m of expenditure under Payment by Results, found an average error rate of 9.4% – with error rates across trusts ranging from […]
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Automated COPD warnings cut hospital admissions
An automated telephone alert system to warn people with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) about forthcoming bad weather has cut emergency hospital admissions by more than a fifth, according to the Met Office. Healthy Outlook, the health forecasting service provided by the Met Office, was used to alert more than 8,000 patients from 189 GP […]
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How the web threatens GP reputations
Lawyer Magnus Boyd argues that ratings websites can destroy doctors’ reputations in the time it takes to send an e-mail.
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CfH plans to extend practice IT support hours
NHS Connecting for Health has announced plans to extend the support hours provided by GP IT suppliers to cover extended hours opening by GP practices. The IT agency is currently consulting with suppliers about extending the opening hours of IT support desks at both ends of the day. Currently the GP Systems of Choice (GPSoC) […]
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Infrastructure strategy for NHS Wales
Informing Healthcare has published its infrastructure strategy for NHS Wales. The first edition covers networking, user access devices, servers and storage, messaging and collaboration, directory and voice services. In each case, the strategy describes the current position, the strategic aim and the next steps towards achieving this aim. However, Informing Healthcare says the resources needed […]
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