Ofcom investigates patient phone systems
Patientline has said it will suspend new installations in hospitals pending the outcome of an Ofcom inquiry into complaints about pricing of calls and competitive practices. Ofcom, the independent telecommunications and broadcasting regulator, has announced that it has started an investigation today into prices charged to patients by Patientline and another healthcare communications provider, Premier […]
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Call for drug ad ban in Australian prescribing software
A survey of drug advertisements in prescribing software used by Australian doctors found the vast majority of the advertisements broke the industry’s code of conduct and has led to calls for such advertising to be banned. The survey examined the advertisements that appeared on Medical Director software, a package which its suppliers Health Communications Network […]
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GP2GP record transfers struggling on attachments
GP2GP record transfer is under threat because the NHS spine may be unable to cope with the size and number of attachments to GP records, according to GP representatives. It appears that the spine is unable to handle the large number of attachments – often vital documents like scanned hospital referral letters – which many […]
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Nurses support IT reform – but lack information
Nurses remain supportive of NHS IT developments and rising numbers feel better informed about them – but the majority still say they have inadequate information or no information at all. This latest snapshot of nurses’ views comes from an online survey by Nursix conducted earlier this year among 1776 Royal College of Nursing (RCN) members. […]
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National patient safety database delivers first results
The National Patient Safety Agency has published its first report on patient safety incidents across the NHS in England and Wales using data from a new national patient safety database designed to help reduce adverse incidents and harm to patients. The report, ‘Building a memory: preventing harm, reducing risks and improving patient safety’, has been […]
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Software for Scottish minor ailments service launched
Software to support the first phase of Scotland’s e-pharmacy plans has begun to be used by a pharmacy to run its minor ailments service. Cegedim Rx is the first of the pharmacy system suppliers to release electronic minor ailments service (e-MAS) software which it is planned will eventually be used by all pharmacies across Scotland. […]
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£1bn NHS electronic procurement network formed
UKprocure have announced the establishment of the NHS Trading Network (NHSTN), which brings together 53 NHS organisations nationwide in one electronic procurement system. The organisations, which include trusts in East London, Oxford, the North-East and Hampshire with a total spend of £1bn, are now banding together in an ‘eMarketplace’ in the aim of achieving savings […]
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Winning over clinicians key to success says Economist
Winning over busy, sceptical clinicians to the benefits of NHS IT modernisation has been highlighted as a key challenge by the influential journal, the Economist. A two page analysis of Connecting for Health’s programme concludes that the agency is making a better fist of the ‘dauntingly vast’ National Programme for IT than pessimists expected, but […]
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NHS temp workers to get shifts by SMS
NHS human resources managers may soon be able to text temporary staff on their books with details of their vacancies, thanks to a partnership announced between a staffing management software company and an SMS paging network. Key IT Systems, which covers around 312 healthcare organisations, is to integrate a text messaging platform provided by PageOne […]
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Royal Society to investigate ICTs in health
The Royal Society, the UK’s national academy of science, has launched an investigation into how the rapidly developing fields of information and communication technology will impact on health and healthcare. Professor Peter Wells of Cardiff University, chair of the working group that will conduct the study, said: "The rapid advances we are seeing in the […]
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