Tuesday, 11 May 2010

Because This Never Happened Before, Right?

The NHS is scaring patients into signing up to its controversial database - by claiming that those who refuse run the risk of receiving the wrong test results or the wrong drugs.
Oh, right. Well, clearly we can't see that start to happen in NHS deathtraps hospitals, eh?
Dire warnings have been placed on the website of the agency in charge of the new IT system, saying that failure to sign up could lead to lost records and prescribing errors.
I'm sure those records will be safe in the new system, though...

Timing is everything, it seems. I just received my notification of computerisation. I've already downloaded the 'No, thanks!' form.
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9 comments:

  1. Dr Evil11 May 2010 at 11:10

    I agreed to have mine up loaded. Be honest, do you really think a government IT system will be any good in the long term? My medical history is pretty simple and sparse anyway. I've been through many patients records and some are hundreds of pages over 50 years for people who are seriously battered from pillar to post. They are interesting medically but utterly boring and pretty impenatrable for most people. They are littered with acronyms too, unintelligable for most lay readers. Ah, the NHS. And many of these acronyms are very much out of date. The only reason you will get the wrong drugs or dose is because the healthcare professional will not have English as a mother tongue and qualified outside of the Western university system.

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  2. subrosa11 May 2010 at 11:42

    Although I see Chalcedon's point I'd opt out like you Julia. Mind you, somehow they'll find a way to get your details onto their system.

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  3. AntiCitizenOne11 May 2010 at 13:24

    Tanks JuliaM,
    Posted to NDS.

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  4. Mark Wadsworth11 May 2010 at 14:36

    The buggers make it very difficult to opt out, I've got the forms kicking about somewhere and keep meaning to fill them in and then work out what the Hell to do with them.

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  5. The Great Simpleton11 May 2010 at 18:29

    I'd rather give mine to Google*

    http://www.google.com/intl/en-US/health/tour/index.html

    *not saying I will, but I trust them more and I reckon they will provide more of a public good with some of the background analysis

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  6. Joe Public11 May 2010 at 20:09

    "......could lead to lost records...."

    Eh?

    Would someone who's not an inmate on a mental ward explain how, if I DON'T sign up to a database, my record could be 'lost'?

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  7. Paul11 May 2010 at 20:58

    With me it was a very simple process. I did it years ago. I made sure that my GP understood that I am 93C3'd.

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  8. JuliaM12 May 2010 at 05:23

    "Be honest, do you really think a government IT system will be any good in the long term? "

    Nope! Which is why they aren't getting my data to lose on a bus somewhere...

    "The buggers make it very difficult to opt out, I've got the forms kicking about somewhere and keep meaning to fill them in and then work out what the Hell to do with them."

    You jusr fill in one form and post it to your GP. That's all I did.

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  9. banned12 May 2010 at 08:38

    Its when the Insurance companies get hold of the data that the proverbial will hit the fan.

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