SCR uploads to continue during review

Tags: Burns Greenhalgh SCR

21 Jun 2010

Summary Care Records will continue to be created and uploaded to the Spine while the programme is under review but no new patient information campaigns will be launched, EHI Primary Care can reveal.

Health minister Simon Burns told the BMA last week that a review would be carried out of the information patients receive on the SCR and the opt-out process as well as a review of the content of the record.

A DH spokesperson told EHI Primary Care: “Records will continue to be created where GP practices and primary care trusts are satisfied that patients have been adequately informed about the records and enabled to opt out if they wish to do so. This will be decided at local level.

“New mailings of letters informing patients about the Summary Care Record will be paused while the review is underway.”

The DH said 1.7 million records have now been created and 29.8 million patients contacted. That means that all of those contacted could now have a SCR created, subject to the 12 week minimum consultation period and the agreement of GP practices and PCTs.

The DH told EHI Primary Care that the number of records that would be created over the next three months would be determined at local level by GP practices and PCTs.

The spokesperson said the DH was in the process of agreeing the timing and detail of the review of use of IT in the NHS, promised by Simon Burns.

Prof Trisha Greenhalgh, lead author of the independent evaluation of the SCR published five days ago LINK, told E-Health Insider last week that it would be an “absolute disgrace” if the government ignored the evaluation of the SCR. The evaluation found that there had been few benefits from the SCR programme so far.

Henry Potts, one of the authors of the SCR evaluation, told EHI primary Care that he hoped the lessons learned from the English experience would be taken on board in the US as it begins its to look at electronic records and that the ‘baby wasn’t thrown out with the bath water’ in England.

He added: “There are benefits to be realised here and just because it’s more difficult than was expected doesn’t mean it isn’t worth doing.”

Fiona Barr

SCR evaluation finds few benefits (17 Jun 2010) (11)
Greenhalgh slams Burns SCR review (15 Jun 2010) (8)
Burns says NHS tech will be reviewed (11 Jun 2010) (9)

Reader's Comments

So that's all right, don't you see?

maryhawking@tigers.demon.co.uk

21 Jun 10 14:06

"Summary Care Records will continue to be created and uploaded to the Spine while the programme is under review but no new patient information campaigns will be launched" so *that's* all right then! We know that a significant number of patients did not receive SCR letters. We know that in many areas the **only** indication patients had was the SCR letter (if it arrived). so records will go on being uploaded without any further publicity campaign?

Pulse reports that the whole nature of the SCR is being changed - no details available.

Is it technically possible to tweek this bit of software that hard?

Take me with you, I can see perfectly

21 Jun 10 22:06

SCR progress has been very slow, and benefits so far few. But that is because not many records are yet uploaded (progress with GP suppliers and CfH testing has been very slow), and urgent care settings are mostly not yet geared up to access.

Your report quotes one of the review report authors suggesting we shouldn't abandon the benefits, I agree.

In my area, I know that, within the inperfect model we were given and adapted, patients have had an opportunity to query or dissent. So continuing to upload records, to start getting some real benefits going for urgent care settings, and at least some value to the patient and taxpayer, makes good sense.

Sorry if that doesn't fit with the thoughts of Pulse or Dr Hawking.