§ Mr. LevittTo ask the Secretary of State for Health what is the timescale for implementation of electronic health records in the National Health Service; on what basis the final scheme will be chosen; if it will be funded entirely from existing NHS funds; and what benefits the electronic health record system is expected to bring to the National Health Service. [144702]
§ Ms StuartThe target in "Information for Health" is for the implementation of a first-generation Electronic Health Record (EHR) by March 2005. The work currently being undertaken by the Electronic Record Development and Implementation Programme (ERDIP) and related initiatives will inform the decision-making process on whether a single or a number of solutions is the way forward.
We are supporting the service in implementing the strategy, of which the EHR is a key component, with additional funding. Announcements over the last 12 months have increased, by £1,061 million, the amount that will be available to health authorities over the period April 2000 to March 2004 for information management and technology.
"Information for Health" does not specifically describe the benefits of the EHR for patients and staff in isolation but rather as a mix of EHR and Electronic Patient Records (EPR) benefits. These can be summarised as:
Convenience and confidence—through patients knowing health care professionals have access to their medical history;Integration of care—through improving the co-ordination of multi-professional and multi-agency care;Improving outcomes—through better decision-making based on up-to-date information;Using evidence—by integrating EPRs with other systems;Supporting analysis—for clinical governance and local planning;Improving efficiency—through reducing time spent collecting data and freeing more time for direct patient care.