The Management of the Introduction of Electronic Patient held Records in the NHS in the UK

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Table of Contents

CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION1

Background1

Aims and objectives3

Significance3

Research Questions3

Ethical Considerations4

CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW6

Record6

Record management6

Record keeping6

Health Record7

Electronic Personal Health Records7

Importance of clinical care system7

Characteristics of Good clinical care system9

Quality Improvement9

Implication and Management of EPR System10

Paper based vs. electronic record12

CHAPTER 3: METHODOLOGY14

Research design14

Secondary and Qualitative Methodology14

Literature Search15

Data Analysis15

REFERENCES16

BIBLIOGRAPHY18

CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION

Background

The National Health System (NHS) is responsible for British public health. Services provided include hospitals, doctors, specialists, dentists, pharmacists, opticians, and ambulances. UK has the best health care system. It provides the quality, efficiency, access to health services, gives healthy lifestyle.  More than 27,000 patients and physicians were surveyed. According to that research despite the achievements in the UK, there is much room for improvement. The medicines, sight tests, glasses, and dental treatments are subsidized. Hospitalization, ambulance services, and medical consultations are free. (Cross 2011, 850)

The National Health Service (NHS) has a strong focus on primary care General Practitioner (GP) or family doctor. Most health centres and Practices in the UK are owned by the GPs. Their income derived from providing services to the NHS. Each GP has a quota of 1500-2000 patients and patients often see a specialist if referred by a GP. The UK is a world leader in the provision of health services. Primary care has a central role within the NHS. In the late 90's, the government introduced a series of measures of quality governance to promote improvements in quality of care in family medicine. These measures were Clinical practice guidelines for the management of chronic diseases, mandatory clinical audit, record information about the quality of healthcare, and annually valuated the quality of healthcare. These measures generated significant improvements in the health care quality, especially in the chronic diseases like diabetes and heart disease. NHS is working nationally for ensuring the NHS patients' records will be kept in the future in an electronic format. The distinctive identifier for all the health care records has been adopted by the NHS i.e. NHS number. This NHS number helps in providing the linkage of health care records across an organizations and systems. The effectiveness of clinical care to the patient will improve by the record linkages. This NHS number helps in keeping the record for the longer period of time. (Barber 1994, 20)

Record management can be defined as the process in which the organizations handle all the records i.e. corporate and health records. These records can be generated internally and externally from their life cycle to their eventual disposal. The proper record keeping helps in providing the patients and clinical care staff protection. The management of the records is also defined as the controlling of the records. These records can be controlled in their formulation, utilization, sustainment, and storage, to their destruction. For the management of the records, following things should be existed in that:

The record should be current and up to date.

The record can be obtainable

It should be interpreted

It should be trusted

The record should be upgraded.

The EPR helps in improving the quality, safety and security, and the effectiveness of the health care. In this research proposal, the study will focus on the management ...