16.01.13
Under one roof
Large IT projects have a pretty terrible reputation in the NHS, so Hunt’s latest announcement may be received less enthusiastically than hoped.
The scheme is certainly ambitious, and a truly joined-up system, where health professionals from different areas of the NHS could see and use the same information, could transform care.
And as the common analogy demonstrates, there are so many other services that the public can access at the touch of a button that it does seem strange that something so vital to our wellbeing is still unavailable.
However, there will be significant challenges ahead. How can patient privacy be protected? And more practically, how will IT companies be able to forge together something so disparate? It’s not for a lack of trying that such a system is still out of reach.
Tell us what you think – have your say below, or email us directly at [email protected]