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   NHS computers cause 110 major incidents: MP demands rethink  

MP says records system may put patients at risk
Many of the incidents involve
the failure of the Picture Archiving
and Communication System (PACS)

A member of the Commons public accounts committee has called on the government to reconsider the future of its controversial national programme for IT in the NHS, following a report that the programme has led to 110 major incidents at hospitals across England in the last four months.

Richard Bacon MP, a member of the public accounts committee, commented after a report in Computer Weekly that 110 major incidents have occurred at hospitals across England during the last four months, after parts of the health service went live with systems supplied under the £12.4 billion national programme for IT in the NHS.


Mr Bacon said: “This is the latest evidence that there are serious and growing problems with the whole national programme for IT in the health service. In some cases NHS staff and clinicians have lost access to their main hospital systems. More than 20 major incidents have affected multiple NHS sites. In many respects the NHS IT programme is making things worse not better, while sowing distrust and disillusionment across the health service.

“It is now time the government reconsidered its approach. It would be more sensible to slim down the programme and to give control of purchasing to hospital chief executives locally, subject to common standards. The tragedy is that if the NHS continues on its present course, a huge amount of money will be spent and much of it will be wasted”.

Mr Bacon recently obtained an admission from health secretary Patricia Hewitt that the Department of Health had made £82 million in advance payments to iSoft, the troubled software company which is supplying three fifths of the national programme.

19 September 2006

See also:
 PARLIAMENT: MP receives admission of £82m paid to iSoft
PARLIAMENT: MPs prescribe antidote for NHS computer crash
PARLIAMENT: NHS computer chaos deepens
PARLIAMENT: MP says Blair's NHS computer dream "won't work"
 PARLIAMENT: MP concerned over spiralling NHS IT costs
PARLIAMENT: MP asks Health Secretary to block IT contract
PARLIAMENT: NHS 'fined' millions by computer companies
SPEECHES: The National Programme for IT in the NHS
SPEECHES: IT in the NHS - 29 June 2004
SPEECHES: IT in the NHS - 12 February 2004
PARLIAMENT: MP says NHS overspend on IT may hurt patients
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© Richard Bacon 2008