§ Mr. ToddTo ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make a statement on(a) the personal responsibilities of the Director General of NHS Information Technology, (b) his responsibility for the NHS Information Authority and (c) his role in directing the implementation of NHS information technology at regional level. [76323]
§ Ms BlearsRichard Granger has been appointed as Director General of Information Technology in the national health service and is responsible for delivering the national programme for IT. This focuses on the key developments that will make a significant difference to improving the patient experience and the delivery of care and services. There are four key deliverables: electronic appointment booking, an electronic care records service, an electronic prescribing service and an underpinning IT infrastructure with sufficient connectivity and broadband capacity to support the critical national applications and local systems.
Gwyn Thomas is the Chief Executive of the NHS Information Authority (NHSIA), which is a special health authority. Richard Granger will be working closely with the NHSIA, the NHS Purchasing and Supply Agency and the Information Policy Unit in the Department of Health. Working together and maintaining strong working relationships will be important for all parties.
In the new NHS planning system, strategic health authorities (StHAs) are responsible for producing local delivery plans that will link sound local investment plans on IT into the national arrangements and framework. Richard Granger will be working through StHAs to ensure that for IT, the focus is on the key deliverables for the national IT programme. He will work with the chief executives and chief information officers at each StHA to ensure that progress is maintained against the critical 264W path for implementation. The chief information officers will report to both their own chief executives and to Richard Granger.