‘Trust Me’, I’m the Director-General
NHS Director-General of IT Richard Granger this week used his first major public speech to make a personal appeal to the NHS IT community, clinicians and suppliers to rally behind him and back his route map for modernising NHS IT. In a keenly anticipated announcement he told a packed audience at HC 2003 in Harrogate […]
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Torex Acquires UK Operations of IBA Health
Torex PLC has announced a strategic alliance with IBA Health Ltd, the Australian supplier of healthcare information systems. As part of the £7 million deal Torex has also acquired the UK-based Hospital Information Systems operation of IBA and InHealth Solutions. As part of the new alliance Torex is taking an 8% stake in IBA Ltd, […]
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DH Shapes Up National IT Structures
The "Who Does What" debate at the top level of healthcare IT continues but the HC2003 audience at Harrogate this week got a glimpse on the shape of things to come for the NHS Information Authority (NHSIA), the Information Policy Unit (IPU) and the National IT Programme Department of Health (DH) director of research, information […]
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First Anniversary for National IT Programme
Birthday greetings to the NHS National IT Programme! It’s 12 months since a new centrally-driven plan for transforming the NHS through IT was announced at Healthcare Computing 2002. So what illumination can we expect at this year’s event in Harrogate? Word is that it may well be a lot less than people had hoped. The […]
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IBM and Newchurch to build ICRS demonstrator
A contract has been awarded to IBM and Newchurch to develop a prototype primary care shared clinical information service for West Midlands Strategic Health Authority and South Warwickshire Primary Care Trust (PCT). The project, which will be led by IBM, is thought to be the first demonstrator to receive National IT Programme funding. The West […]
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Gateshead Prescribes Business Intelligence Software
Gateshead Health NHS Trust has begun to use business intelligence software provided by Cognos to help monitor and proactively improve performance, including the key indicators that determine trust’s star ratings. The new analytical software, which went live last month, provides senior management at the trust with a more detailed view of key performance indicators and enhances […]
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Bumper Response to National IT Programme OJEC
Some 99 firms have submitted responses to the Department of Health’s OJEC advertisement inviting expressions of interest from firms to act as prime contractors in delivering the National IT Programme for the NHS. The DH described the size and quality of the response as excellent, “with all of the major national and international IT companies […]
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Lord Hunt Resigns Over Iraq
Health minister Lord Hunt of King’s Heath, the minister responsible for the NHS National IT Programme, followed Commons Leader Robin Cook and resigned from the government over Iraq. Lord Hunt was Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Health in the House of Lords. His portfolio included responsibility for the NHS National IT Programme, and he […]
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NHS Wales Launches Online Jobs Service
The NHS in Wales has launched a jobs service which brings health service vacancies together on a single web site. The site allows users to search for jobs by category, organisation, salary, hours, keywords and geographical area in Wales. It is open to existing NHS staff who want to change jobs and to the public. […]
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Medical Records Found on Memory Stick
An incident in which a Cheshire estate agent found a memory stick she had bought contained confidential clinical records has highlighted the NHS’s failure to implement effective encryption services to protect patient information. Bolton Royal Hospitals NHS Trust has launched an investigation into how confidential medical records for 13 cancer patients were contained on a […]
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