Online education used to combat hospital infections
A new internet education service launched this week aims to give health workers in Scotland immediate access to latest information on healthcare associated infections (HAI). Health Minister Andy Kerr said the initiative, provided by NHS Education for Scotland (NES), would help in the fight against HAI by providing frontline NHS staff with knowledge on best […]
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BMA issues FOI guidelines for GPs
The BMA has issued new guidance to General Practitioners on the Freedom of Information Act advising them to be open about data from the Quality and Outcomes Framework (QoF), introduced under the new GMS contract. Issued by the BMA’s GP Committee says the guidance states that withholding QoF data "could be seen as detrimental to […]
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Release QoF data if asked, BMA advises
GPs are being advised to release Quality and Outcomes Framework (QoF) data before national figures are published if their practices are asked to do so under the Freedom of Information Act. The British Medical Association’s General Practitioner Committee (GPC) has released new guidance (www.bma.org.uk/ap.nsf/Content/freedomfaqs) about the Freedom of Information which advises practices to be open […]
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Scottish GPs win choice over practice systems
Scottish GPs will be able to change IT system provider under a new deal announced yesterday. The Scottish Executive Health Department (SEHD) and the BMA’s Scottish General Practitioner Committee have agreed that practices can change to a new system provided that certain conditions are met including the agreement that any new system must use […]
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Crunch time
How will the general election affect NHS IT? E-Health Insider takes a comprehensive look at what each party has to say about the major e-health issues.
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FOI challenge on QoF data
The owner of an online information service is challenging a decision to hold back publication of Quality and Outcomes Framework (QoF) data until August. Gordon Blackwell, owner of the National Health Intelligence Service told EHI Primary Care: “I don’t think they have any right to deny me access to that information. Section 22 of the […]
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QoF results publication likely in next two months
Quality and Outcomes Framework results for every practice in England and Scotland are likely to be published on government websites within the next two months, according to the organisations responsible for coordinating the data. An official from the Health and Social Care Information Centre in England, the body that will hold all Quality and Outcomes […]
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Siemens chosen for eye screening in Scotland
NHS Scotland has signed a deal with Siemens Medical Solutions to supply the screening module of its Soarian web-based electronic patient record system for diabetic retinopathy screening. Siemens will be supplying the web-based architecture to store and transfer images and patient records, and NHS Scotland will be responsible for setting up the infrastructure. "The project […]
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Emergency care summary set to rollout in Scotland
A project which allows out-of-hours services access to an emergency care summary of patients’ GP records is likely to be rolled out across Scotland. The Emergency Care Summary project has been piloted in two health boards, Ayrshire and Arran and Grampian, since late last year and an evaluation report to be published shortly is expected […]
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Northern Ireland unveils plans for electronic records
Northern Ireland has announced plans to develop its own electronic care record in a move which has led to calls for a UK-wide IT programme. The ten year plan for health and social services information technology in Northern Ireland was announced by Angela Smith, Northern Ireland health minister. Costs for implementing the strategy are estimated […]
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