A good idea wrongly introduced

doi:10.1136/bmj.39289.671053.BE

BMJ 2007;335:222 (4 August), doi:10.1136/bmj.39289.671053.BE

Letters

Summary care records

A good idea wrongly introduced

The first 100% of the full text of this article appears below.

So Winfield believes that all patients should be delighted atthe idea of electronic summary care records.¹ If they are suchan obvious blessing, why not invite patients to opt in to thesystem? She will be knocked down in the stampede. This was whatthe BMA and Patient Concern have always wanted.

Instead, we have been presented with a system of presumed consentwhere the vast majority of patients will have no sight of theirrecords to be uploaded. Presumed consent is no consent at all,and it is all credit to the BMA for recognising this.

Joyce W Robins, codirector

Patient Concern, PO Box 23732, London SW5 9FY

joyceconcern@hotmail.com

Competing interests: None declared.