TheConservative
Partyhas commissioned a board member of
theBritish Computer
Societyto conduct an independent review of
theNHS
National Programme for IT.
Some analysts have said the project's expenditure and late
delivery will become a major issue in the forthcoming election.
The review will be chaired by Glyn Hayes, former chair of the
British Computer Society (BCS)
Health Informatics Forum. The review will report back to
Conservative shadow health minister Stephen O'Brien.
Both Glyn Hayes and the BCS have stressed the review will be
independent. The BCS remained apolitical, they said.
The evidence for the review will be collected speedily, with all
written evidence having to be submitted by the end of September
this year.
There will be oral hearings conducted in October and
November.
It is expected a first draft of the report will be produced in
December, and the final report is set to be published by the end of
March 2009 - the expected election year.
In an industry letter inviting submissions, Dr Hayes said
electronic patient records, a key plank of the National Programme
for IT, have a central role to play in the NHS.
He said: "In particular, we are aware of the benefits to be
gained from patient-centred records. We believe that such records,
appropriately designed, properly implemented, and made available to
those providing health and, where feasible, social care, would
enable the improvement and efficient management of patient and
service user outcomes."
The members of the review group are: Gail Beer, independent
consultant; Iain Carpenter, clinical lead on record standards,
Health Informatics Unit, Royal College of Physicians; Ian Shepherd,
chartered IT professional; and Professor John Williams, director,
Health Informatics Unit, Royal College of Physicians.
All interested parties can submit written evidence to:
evidence@healthitpolicyreview.info
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