Re: Really?!
No, they don't just make it up. There is not really any such thing as "The NHS". It's simply not one orginisation as some people seem to beleive. People understand depressingly little about how the NHS is ran at the moment, despite having strong opinions about how it should be run.
"The NHS" was created after WW2 as a billing structure so that existing healthcare providers could provide care and just bill "the NHS". It largely remains this way, more of a bodged franchise who's providers bill it than an single designed orginisation. NHS England will likely have less idea of how many of their franchises have XP PC's than McDonalds. Yes, this is outright insane and nobody would ever design a system like this, however this is the situation and nobody can change it without cries of "SAVE THE NHS!!!!1!1!!" from political parties.
As noted, NHS England is a billing structure for around ten thousand seperate entities that bill the taxpayer for it's services. Each has it's own network, computers IT staff etc, with a fairly minimal amount of interoperability via N3, which allows access to the NHS spine if you have a smartcard issued by your local Registration Authority which gives you the minimum level of access that is clinically required to do your work.
Your hospital is almost certainly it's own trust, which means that it does the heathcare you require and then sends a bill upwards for the treatment provided. Your GP is the best part of the NHS right? Did you know he's actually a completely seperate (for profit) business just billing the local trust for the work he does? No? Your hardly alone. FYI your local trust also probably offers clinics etc that you can go to (in direct competition with your GP) because they can run the clinic and do the work directly, thereby avoiding paying the GP their standard rates for the work.
I could spend all afternoon writing about the absurdaties, but please do a bit of reading and cease listening to the politicians. I would respectfully suggest that they are not the best source of information!
Biting the hand that feeds IT
