§ Tim LoughtonTo ask the Secretary of State for Health what training is available to medical students to enable them to write electronic patient records. [75509]
§ Mr. Lammy[holding answer 21 October 2002]: Individual university medical schools determine their own undergraduate medical curriculum in the light of recommendations from the General Medical Council's 394W (GMC's) education committee, which has the statutory responsibility to determine the extent and knowledge and skill required for the granting of primary medical qualifications in the United Kingdom.
The education committee's most recent recommendations on undergraduate medical education are contained in Tomorrow's Doctors which was published in July 2002. It requires all graduates to be able to take and record a patient's history safely and effectively.
The GMC's recommendations on general clinical training in the pre-registration house officer (PRHO) year cover medical informatics including how to use information storage and retrieval systems effectively. As part of their in-service training PRHOs are expected to become familiar with the information technology facilities of the hospital or health centre in which they are training.