back to article Expert welcomes UK’s digital health recommendations

New recommendations made to the UK government over how to encourage greater use of technology in the NHS in England can help health bodies meet challenging budget constraints and deliver more convenience for patients, an expert has claimed. Expert in digital health Matthew Godfrey-Faussett of Pinsent Masons, the law firm …

  1. Chronos
    Flame

    "impactful"? Seriously?

    I think these people are just making shit up as they go along.

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: "impactful"? Seriously?

      Yes. But by describing it as a digital roadmap developed within an MSU methodology then they can charge serious money for it.

      Luckily there's bottomless pockets to pay for it. Yours and mine.

  2. sysconfig

    Free Wifi, health/personal data, GOV involvement...

    what could possibly go wrong?

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: Free Wifi, health/personal data, GOV involvement...

      what could possibly go wrong?

      Your question generates a near infinite number of answers, with an infinite number of permutations (pedants: feel free to wade in). I suggest you reverse the question and ask "what, realistically speaking, might go right?"

      Answers on the back of a postage stamp...

  3. Steve 114

    True to Type

    The elephant in the room, or indeed absent from it, is that most patients, doctors, carers and nurses can't type and prefer not to type.

    1. Lyndon Hills 1

      Re: True to Type

      Hey Cortana, book me an appointment with the clap doctor.

      Or Siri, whatever. Typing won't be required by the time this goes live.

      1. Terry 6 Silver badge

        Re: True to Type

        Typing will always be needed. Because if we want to book an appointment, or whatever, it will as like as not be in a public place. Where voice commands will be impractical, anti-social or just plain embarrassing.

        1. Adam 52 Silver badge

          Re: True to Type

          Typing essential, like we do now over the phone to the receptionist?

    2. riparian zone

      Re: True to Type

      following just behind, is another, older elephantine friend...good old fashioned literacy. ESOL classes so you write up your complaint to your hospital PALS anyone? anyone?

  4. Graham Marsden
    Holmes

    "the NHS needs...

    "... to make sure that users have confidence in the security of the networks that are being offered"

    Minister: "Yes, we can confidently assure the public that we have been given the best advice on how to ensure that our systems are not hacked and that patients' data is secure. (Sotto voce) And we've ignored all of it because that sort of thing is expensive and by the time it all goes tits-up, someone else will be in this job and some poor sap three levels down will be blamed and any fines levied will just transfer money from one balance sheet to another..."

    1. Adam 52 Silver badge

      Re: "the NHS needs...

      You'll note that the new snooping bill allows the Police and friends to slurp up all the patient data into a central database.

  5. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Never an original idea...

    Has MLF ever come up with an idea on her own? It seems all she does is ride to "success" on the coat-tails of other people's ideas. Even last-minute wasn't soley her idea.

  6. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    They're not serious about this

    She also called on the government to encourage at least 10 per cent of GP patients to use digital services to book doctor appointments, request repeat prescriptions and access their medical records by 2017.

    My surgery offers all of these services. But:

    1) Appointments can only be made up to 7 days ahead, and then only for doctors, not any other clinics. And my doctor never has any appointments free earlier than 5 days ahead. So in practice you can't do it online and have to phone;

    2) Repeat prescriptions actually work! As long as it's not something you only need every 3 months or so, in which case their system purges the prescription. And it randomly rejects prescriptions anyway about one time in five;

    3) The only medical records available are current repeat prescriptions and a list of any ongoing investigations. No detail whatsoever.

    What's surprising is that anyone bothers, really.

    1. Terry 6 Silver badge

      Re: They're not serious about this

      Add to this the places with a high percentage of elderly residents, where >90% may not be of the comfortable computer using age group.

    2. Doctor Syntax Silver badge

      Re: They're not serious about this

      "Repeat prescriptions actually work!"

      Lucky old you. After several reissued passwords SWMBO still hasn't been able to log on to get repeat prescriptions.

  7. Commswonk

    Eh?

    "This will be a powerful and impactful step to improve people’s take up of digital health and new technologies," Lane Fox said. "It could open the doors to new digital tools and technologies and it could transform health and social care services. In addition, it would mean the NHS taking a wider leadership role in the national effort to eradicate digital exclusion."

    A nice piece of "management bollocks" in the run - up to Christmas. Bullshit baffles brains, etc.

    Apart from anything else I want the NHS to concentrate on healthcare, not "taking a wider leadership role in the national effort to eradicate digital exclusion."

    The latter makes about as much sense as taking medical advice from a paperclip. (Which gives a clue to the age of my PC!)

  8. Doctor Syntax Silver badge

    "Among the advice she gave was a recommendation that the UK government ensure that there is access to free Wi-Fi within all NHS buildings in England."

    Why? Does she also recommend that ISPs give free health treatments?

  9. riparian zone

    there is a project, the one stop shop of patient prescription..

    can't seem to find it though...https://github.com/CDECatapult/data.gp-practice-england

  10. David Roberts
    Mushroom

    Give someone else the job

    All sorts of things wrong about this (see post above about age of patients, for example) but the biggest thing that springs out at me is this: the Government isn't going to make sure that at least 90% of the population has a computer, an Internet connection, and comprehensive training in the use of same.

    No, they are putting the task of getting 90% of patients onto electronic systems onto the primary care givers. So not MLF and co. but the poor bloody GP practices.

    The message seems clear; task someone else with the job, blame them if it fails, claim credit if it works.

    Speaking as someone who is working as a patient volunteer with the local Practice Manager to trial bits of new software, and also as someone who is pushing them to make more use of their web site the picture is sadly clear. An estimated 90% of patients just don't care about Internet access to the local GP.

    Most just want an appointment NOW and what do you mean all your slots are booked for today? So the doctors have to keep some slots free for genuine urgent cases, and they have to triage these to filter out the non-urgent cases. I doubt that there is an expert system available to GPs to perform this triage (apart from the current meatware).

    So the majority of patients (who may see the GP once a year if that) have no interest or incentive to go through the hassle of registering for online access and storing the ID and password somewhere safe in case they need it in a year or so. When they want access they want it fast so they phone up.

    IMHO the major gainers from electronic systems will be those with a chronic complaint who are regular users of the GP and/or specialist nursing staff. As a T2 Diabetic I like the ability to browse back through my medical records, especially the blood test results, to remind myself how good/bad my control has been over a period of years. Repeat prescriptions (which do work on our surgery system) are also good as is the ability to schedule regular check ups.

    One of the "opportunities" with GP computer systems is that each practice can choose an accredited supplier so not all practices use the same software so features and facilities will vary depending on where you are.

    TL;DR usual pointless Government bullshit.

    1. Terry 6 Silver badge

      Re: Give someone else the job

      Absolutely.

      Just think how many of us ( in the sense of ordinary folk not just tecchies) do password resets because they need a p/w they haven't needed for a few months.

      For the people who just need an appointment on a rare occasion all this elaborate high tech stuff is a total pointless waste.

      Where it would be good is for those who have chronic low level health problems, needing routine monitoring appointments or repeated prescriptions.

      For the rest the good old direct phone call is the most efficient system ever.

      Free WiFi in the health centre? I guess if it doesn't divert funds from core NHS services it can't do any harm and might do some good. But who pays for the bandwidth/hardware/tech support?

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