Hospital clerk jailed for culling patient data
A hospital worker from Northern Ireland who collected information from the patient records of politicians, senior military and police personnel, prison officers, members policing boards and loyalists was jailed for six years earlier this month. Belfast Crown Court Judge Mr Justice Higgins told Ciaran James Cunningham that it was “difficult to think of a more […]
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Doctors’ support for NPfIT tailing off, says survey
A new survey has revealed that doctors’ support for the aims of the national programme has fallen to 54% from 65% in February, and that the majority of them are still in the dark about its aims. In their biannual poll of doctors, Medix UK asked 400 GPs and 450 hospital doctors about their attitudes to the […]
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Support for Read Codes to end in 18 months
The NHS Terminology Service has announced that the maintenance of Read Codes is to end on 31st December, 2005, to clear the way for the introduction of SNOMED Clinical Terms (SNOMED CT) in the NHS Care Records Service. In a notice forwarded with the July 2004 update of the Read Codes, the NHS Terminology Service […]
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Communications boss appointed by national programme
The National Programme for IT finally has a communications director, after an on-off-on search that began early last year. The new post has been taken up this month by James Herbert, previously a former army officer, BBC broadcast journalist and ex-head of global media relations with oil giant Shell. Commenting on the challenge Herbert […]
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South Tees NHS Trust buys spinal injuries record system
The North of England Regional Spinal Cord Injuries Centre at The James Cook University Hospital, Middlesborough, part of South Tees Hospitals NHS Trust, has just signed a contract with IMS MAXIMS plc for an integrated clinical record system. The purpose-built Regional Spinal Injuries Centre, which opened in 2002, serves a population of approximately 3.5 million […]
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Innovative System for Enabling IT Access for Students
A London mental health trust has set up an innovative system for allowing nursing students to have access to patient records and other electronic information. Pre-registration education nurse education co-ordinator, Roger James, at South West London and St George’s NHS Mental Health Trust said it was the first among London mental health trusts to organise […]
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Ayr Hospital Uses Tablets for Prescribing
Ayrshire and Arran Acute Hospitals NHS Trust is leading the development of hospital e-prescribing in the Scottish NHS. One of the key issues they have faced is finding the right device to enable staff to enter and call up prescribing details on the wards and by the patient bedside. "We’ve had e-prescribing for the past […]
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Patient Letters: Do We Really Need More Research?
Two leading doctors have challenged the need for further research and pilots on the NHS Plan’s pledge to give patients copies of letters about and summaries of their treatment and care. Professor Sir Cyril Chantler, senior associate at the King’s Fund and Mr James Johnson, chairman of the British Medical Association’s joint consultants’ committee, point […]
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