Information at heart of NHS Constitution
Providing information to support choice is a “major priority” for the health service, according to the new NHS Constitution for England. A handbook published to support the constitution, which was launched at a “historic signing ceremony” at Downing Street yesterday, highlights a number of areas in which IT and information services will be developed to […]
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IT underpins NHS reform in Queen’s speech
The government is planning to introduce a health bill to Parliament that will require further investment in IT and new information services for the public, the Queen’s speech has confirmed. The National Health Service Reform Bill will give the NHS its first, ever written constitution, drive forward the government’s quality and choice agendas, and strengthen […]
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NHS chief execs may be accountable for data loss
The Information Commissioner has backed proposals by cabinet secretary, Sir Gus O’Donnell to hold senior Whitehall figures and NHS chief executives personally responsible if their department or trust loses or mishandles personal information. Speaking at the Infosecurity Europe conference in London last Tuesday, Information Commissioner Richard Thomas said he has seen a draft of O’Donnell’s report […]
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EU Parliament amends assisted living project
Members of the European Parliament have stressed that the new Ambient Assisted Living (AAL) programme must be cost effective and respect privacy. The AAL programme is an initiative by the European Parliament to improve the quality of life of older people and help them live independently for longer, through the use of ICT. It is […]
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Scottish pharmacies want emergency records access
Community Pharmacy Scotland, representing the owners of Scotland’s 1200 chemists, has made appropriate access to the Scottish Emergency Care Summary (ECS) part of its manifesto pledges. The organisation has called on the Scottish government to allow community pharmacists to obtain access to the record, when appropriate, as part of their latest manifesto document which lays […]
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Children’s services system wins national IT award
The West Lothian Community Health and Care Partnership (CHCP) has won the Local Government IT Excellence Award for its ‘C-Me’ project, designed to improve the delivery of services to children in the region. West Lothian CHCP beat off competition from Hertfordshire County Council and East Riding of Yorkshire Council to scoop the prize for its […]
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Academics call for NPfIT technical assessment
A group of 23 computer science academics from around the UK have written an open letter calling for an “independent technical assessment” of the National Programme for IT. They say in their letter to the House of Commons health select committee: "Concrete, objective information about NPfIT’s [National Programme for IT] progress is not available to external […]
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NHS 24 waiting times unacceptable, says SNP
The Scottish National Party has accused the Scottish Executive of "staggering incompetence" over what it sees as rising call-back times and complaints in NHS 24. Figures released to the Scottish Parliament in response to a question posed by Stewart Stevenson, MSP for Banff and Buchan, showed that the average callback time rose from under 10 minutes […]
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Major ministerial reshuffle for health
John Hutton, the health minister whose responsibilities included NHS IT, has been promoted in the post-election reshuffle. He enters the new cabinet as Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, the formal title for the minister for the Cabinet Office. He will head up the department where the government’s chief information officer, Ian Watmore, works monitoring […]
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NAO to investigate National Programme for IT
In an unusual move the £6.2 billion National Programme for IT (NPfIT) is to be investigated by the National Audit Office (NAO), Parliament’s independent public spending watchdog, just two years after the programme was launched. With the major contracts now let and implementation work said to be beginning, the agency will undertake what it describes […]
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