§ Mr. Gordon PrenticeTo ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of the implications for the NHS of the increasing use of the Internet in informing patient choices of the nature and range of treatment available to those suffering from specific complaints. [5949]
§ Mr. MilburnSharing information about health and healthcare is central to the National Health Service Executive's Information Management and Technology Strategy for the NHS. The establishment of a networking infrastructure makes it possible to examine the potential for telemedicine and online booking of appointments, together with the electronic transfer of test requests and results. The network can also be used to deliver multimedia training material to clinicians, together with health educational and informative material that can be targeted at specific groups of patients and the public—for example, on smoking—that could be made available through general practitioner surgeries and clinics.
Scope for direct public access to health information is clearly more limited—it is paramount that there should be no compromise to the security and confidentiality of clinical information systems. Nevertheless there is considerable opportunity for the Department, the NHS Executive, and the NHS to make available generic health information and information about the NHS; an increasing number of trusts and health authorities are already creating publicly accessible websites on the Internet. There is interest within the Department and the NHS on extending these as communications possibilities open up through public library networks and the proposed public access kiosk.
Department of Health officials maintain liaison with industry to ensure their support and co-operation in exploiting the potential of electronic communications in the delivery of responsive and efficient healthcare, and take part in the Department of Trade and Industry's "IT for All" initiative.