BMJ  2003;327:623 (13 September), doi:10.1136/bmj.327.7415.623-a

Letter

Sharing patient information electronically throughout NHS

Ability to provide seamless decision support will be key factor

The first 150 words of the full text of this article appear below.

EDITOR—Booth's editorial is timely and raises several important issues.¹ Although clinicians have to assume a prominent role in planning and implementing a new integrated care record service, they should also be convinced why keeping patients' records electronically is useful.²

Booth details the advantage of being able to share patient data, improve clinical and workflow efficiency, and reduce medical errors. Clinicians are also interested in how it will help with their clinical workflow. Safe care for patients now requires a degree of individualisation that is impossible without computerised clinical decision support.³

As active clinical practitioners involved in the development of a decision support system for paediatrics (ISABEL, www.isabel.org.uk),⁴ we believe that the ability to provide seamless decision support in practice will be the key to clinician satisfaction with the new system. This approach allows the implementation of evidence based decisions supported by the National Institute for Clinical Excellence, . . . [Full text of this article]

Imperial College London, Paediatric Intensive Care Unit, St Mary's Hospital, London W2 1NY ram@isabel.org.uk

Isabel Medical Charity, St Mary's Hospital

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