Information society : agenda for action in the UK : evidence received after 31 March 1996 / Select Committee on Science and Technology.
- Great Britain. Parliament. House of Lords. Science and Technology Committee.
- Date:
- 1996
Licence: Open Government Licence
Credit: Information society : agenda for action in the UK : evidence received after 31 March 1996 / Select Committee on Science and Technology. Source: Wellcome Collection.
10/324 page 312
![16 April 1996] [ Continued system using READ coding (representing a compatible standard) and the current links between general practitioners practices and laboratories or local area networks which are based on e-mail and plain text standards. REASONS FOR INCOMPATIBILITY We believe that in the NHS such incompatabilities are arising primarily as a result of local systems being developed by non-experts using inexpensive hardware and software, which whilst satisfying short term needs has created long term problems. By contrast the National EDIFACT standard is complex and requires a long term national plan and implementation strategy to ensure it works effectively and efficiently. We are concerned that the lack of clear advice from the Department of Health on this is hindering the development of this national standard and thus encouraging the growth of cheaper, less efficient local alternatives. The BMA has supported moves towards open systems technology and the development of proprietary hardware/software which share common standards so that they may easily communicate with one another. We also have continued to emphasise the need for future developments in health care technology to be steered by health care professionals themselves. 2. What services are being provided, or should be developed or will be required, within certain areas, for example, the health service. . The BMA is only able to comment here only on developments within the National Health Service and would wish to draw attention to the NHS Information Management & Technology Strategy which provides a national plan aimed at developing the use of information within the NHS. We are very concerned that the strategy represents many loosely connected aims, the majority of which are laudable, but they'do not appear to be supported by an adequately resourced strategy for implementation. We believe that this has resulted in considerable uncertainty and a lack of clear direction. We also fear that a lack of understanding exists within the service of both the impact and demands that information technology imposes on an organisation as large and diverse as the NHS. There appear to be major uncertainties as to how benefits of such technology will contribute to the care of patients as well as the management of the organisation itself. The BMA believes that the development of current and future services in the health sector may be divided into: Services not handling identifiable patient information: Access to and organisation of the health care literature. Access to knowledge bases for decision support in health care. Multimedia, interactive teaching and learning in health care. Bulletin boards and new groups focusing on general and more specific aspects of health care. Services handling identifiable patient information: Sharing of patient information between those health care professionals directly involved in the care of that patient. The practice of tele-medicine eg computer conferencing, computer diagnosis, remote surgery. Services which currently handle identifiable patient information but which should not handle this type of data: Administration of the newly developed internal market structure of the NHS. | Epidemiological research, without the express consent of the individuals concerned. 3. Who will supply these services to consumers in the UK? How can the participating companies be categorised and what is the nature of the commercial relationships between them? How are suppliers likely to develop? What service standards exist and how are they likely to evolve? The services may be provided both commercially and non-commercially on a co-operative basis. Both will be offered from a wide range of different sources including academic institutions, primary and secondary care institutions, professional organisations, patient organisations and private industry. The BMA has expressed grave concern in connection with the intention to provide services to the health care sector through the NHS- Wide Network “HealthNet” and we explain this in more detail in our evidence to question 5.](https://iiif.wellcomecollection.org/image/b32218631_0010.jp2/full/800%2C/0/default.jpg)
