BMJ Group buys exam site
The BMJ Group has bought OnExamination.com, a specialist website dealing with online exam preparation for doctors, medical students and other healthcare professionals. The website will be integrated into BMJ Learning which provides online learning modules and masterclasses for 95,000 registered users. BMJ claims it is the UK market leader in clinical events for general practice […]
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EC may reconsider patient information rules
The European Commission is considering tabling legislation next year that would change the rules on the information that drug companies can provide to patients, according to the British Medical Journal. The expectation is that there will be some relaxation of the rules which strictly control the information that drug companies can offer patients and restrict […]
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QoF architects call for changes
The architects of the Quality and Outcomes Framework (QoF) have called for a raft of changes to the scheme as the House of Commons Health Committee prepares to consider how QoF could be used to reduce health inequalities. Prof Martin Roland, director of The National Primary Care Research and Development Centre, led work on developing […]
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QoF: measuring performance, missing the point
Mechanistic management strategies – embedded into computer software – become fixed and static presenting the danger that innovation will be stifled, according to a critical analysis of the Quality Outcomes Framework (QoF) for measuring GP performance. The analysis of QoF, published in the BMJ, was completed by an influential team of researchers: GP, Iona Heath; Professor […]
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New information governance board announced
Members of the new National Information Governance Board for health and social care in England, the body who will be responsible for ownership of the Care Record Guarantee have been named by the Department of Health Chair of Connecting for Health’s Care Record Development Board (CRDB), Harry Cayton will continue as the new chair of […]
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Granger’s successor remains a mystery
Richard Granger’s successor as chief executive of Connecting for Health and director general of IT at the Department of Health is still unknown, twelve weeks after he announced his resignation in transition from the post. Enquiries from E-Health Insider this week have been unable to clarify when Granger will officially leave CfH, and more intriguingly […]
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Patients need assurance on online health records
Patients need to be convinced that electronic personal health records (ePHRs) are safe and will benefit them, a group of leading academics have warned. The academics argue that although ePHRs, such as the UK’s HealthSpace, have huge potential patients have not yet been convinced and the business case is still to be established. They say […]
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BMJ Health Intelligence launched
The BMJ Group has launched a web-based public health resource including data, cost effectiveness information plus information on local projects, policies and guidelines. BMJ Health Intelligence is being offered to primary care trusts, local authorities and GP practices via an annual subscription based on the size of their population. The BMJ Group says the online […]
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GP records play key role in most popular paper
A database of anonymised GP records was the source for the most popular research paper of 2005 published by the British Medical Journal. The study, which showed that ibuprofen and other commonly used painkillers could increase the risk of a heart attack, was published in June 2005 in the BMJ. The online version of the […]
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BMJ says it will have to charge for BestTreatments
The BMJ Group says the Department of Health’s withdrawl of funding from its award-winning website BestTreatments means it will now probably have to charge patients for access for the service. The website has been available through NHS Direct online since 2004 and provides information on more than 1500 treatments. The BMJ say it was developed to help communication […]
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