A new private venture is offering NHS patients the chance to inspect their complete medical record, in electronic form, on any personal computer. Health eCard, being piloted in north London, is the latest of several initiatives which aim to give patients access to their medical records by using IT (information technology). Although the concept of electronic “patient held records” is not new, the technology seems to be coming of age—kindling debate on safety, confidentiality, the amount of information to which patients should routinely have access, and the potential impact on NHS resources.

Allowing patients to view their own records is one goal of the £12.4bn (€18bn; $24bn) national programme for IT in the National Health Service in England. However, initiatives led by general practitioners and commercial suppliers are moving more swiftly and allowing more comprehensive access than has been promised by the “official” system for access to records, which is due to go live later this year.