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I work both in a paper light Family practice and a computer free
hospital (rather there is one on every desk but yet to be turned on). It
is frustrating in the extreme not to be able to access recent result and
discharge information when doing my hospital job when the patient is
consulting. However I am amazed at the price tag being given to this
project. I am also aware that old informaion is usualy cluter and most of
what is buried in old paper noted can stay buried.What we don't need is
volumes of electronic clutter. When are the public going to be asked if
they want their medical information held centrally for all to access -
before or after the money is spent, before or after it is entered and what
happens to those who decline? Where does the private sector fit in? Some
of the many questions that were not answered in this article
While the NHS IT goals will very likely launch it into the
world of cyberspace with its near-limitless possibilities,
we were unable to find out either from the article or the
government website whether this would entail use of 'open
source' technology (ie free for all) or not. Such
technology is used by agencies such as NASA, European
parliament and several governments (USA, Japan etc) for
both online and offline applications. Unlike open source
(Linux), commercialised software is constantly riddled
with viruses, worms,...undermining the reliability of
these systems and further adding to their cost.
Risk of expensive non consented information overload
I work both in a paper light Family practice and a computer free
hospital (rather there is one on every desk but yet to be turned on). It
is frustrating in the extreme not to be able to access recent result and
discharge information when doing my hospital job when the patient is
consulting. However I am amazed at the price tag being given to this
project. I am also aware that old informaion is usualy cluter and most of
what is buried in old paper noted can stay buried.What we don't need is
volumes of electronic clutter. When are the public going to be asked if
they want their medical information held centrally for all to access -
before or after the money is spent, before or after it is entered and what
happens to those who decline? Where does the private sector fit in? Some
of the many questions that were not answered in this article
Competing interests:
None declared
Competing interests: No competing interests