Are GPs Right To Boycott E-health Records? British Medical Journal

Editor's Choice
Main Category: IT / Internet / E-mail
Also Included In: Primary Care / General Practice;  Public Health
Article Date: 20 Jul 2007 - 0:00 PDT


It has been labeled as the largest civilian IT programme in the world - The NHS Information and Technology Programme. Its main feature is a nationally accessible summary of patients' records. An article this week questions the boycott of summary care records by General Practitioners (GPs).

You can read this article in this week's British Medical Journal (BMJ).

Marlene Winfield works for National Patient Lead at NHS Connecting for Health; this is the agency that has to deliver the programme. She says that as a patient she would like to be able to see her own records. She asks whether the risks of the summary care record is enough to justify an outright boycott by GPs on her behalf.

The new record has two main aims:

1. To provide the National Health Service (NHS) with vital patient information, when none is available from other sources.
2. For patients to have access to a summary of their own health records whenever they require them.

Winfield says "For me as a patient this means that anyone I ask to help me at evenings and weekends will know basic information about me, she says. This is particularly important now that GPs no longer provide their own out of hours cover."

She understands why GPs may be concerned about confidential information. However, she adds that vital information should be shared with others who need it to provide care. She stresses that it is up to the patient - he/she can participate fully or not at all, and change their minds whenever they wish.

The risk of confidentiality must be weighed against the risk to patients of poor information sharing, she said.

Another concern GPs have is that information that is not accurate may be shared. Winfield says that if a patient has access to it he/she can check it. "I don't want my doctors taking all the responsibility for my healthcare and keeping all the information to themselves."

Winfield concludes by saying that research has shown that true collaboration produces better outcomes for the NHS as well as patients, compared to paternalism. It is for this reason that she went to work for NHS Connecting for Health, she writes.

"Personal View: For patients' sake, don't boycott e-health records"
BMJ Volume 335 p 158
http://www.bmj.com

Written by: Christian Nordqvist
Editor: Medical News Today
Copyright: Medical News Today
Not to be reproduced without permission of Medical News Today

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