Developing a standard dataset for the NHS

Read codes' primary use is clinical

EDITOR,--N Smith and colleagues identify imperfections in the Read codes.1 They do not, however, give due consideration to the fact that the codes were developed primarily as a means of entering clinical data into a computer in general practice, facilitating the development of an electronic record of certain aspects of patients' care. The codes were not developed as a tool for delivering health care information to central, academic, public health, or managerial bodies.

The codes have been used successfully …