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    Your views: NHS IT programme

It's the 60th anniversary of the NHS, so we asked IT PRO readers what they thought about the massive IT upgrade plan.

By Nicole Kobie, 4 Jul 2008 at 17:16

This weekend marks the 60th anniversary of the National Health Service in England. In our weekly newsletter, we asked for your thoughts on the National Programme for IT – the massive £12.6 billion upgrade and IT implementation currently wreaking havoc across the healthcare system.

To those of you following the delays and troubles, it should come as no surprise that some people are pretty angry about the system.

“It's a massive cock up. It will be decades before it works properly. It is a huge waste of public money. And it is not a problem with the IT technology and software involved. As with any other NHS project it is a management issue,” said Richard.

Peter wrote in to say it’s about time we got some tech, but the programme could use some management skills, too. “They should have had the best in IT years ago. However, as the NHS has never been national it is surprising that it is now getting to use systems that will benefit the patient… All the hi-tech systems in the world cannot make up for the appalling lack of good management.”

Others said that IT in the NHS is necessary, but agreed that the government has no idea what it’s doing with rolling out such systems.

David said: “The problem in not whether computerising all NHS records is imperative, it clearly is. It is the incompetence of the software suppliers, and the incompetence of the Government to employ an expert who knows how simple the problem is.”

Richard agreed: “The computerisation of the NHS is a very necessary process to increase efficiency and to move around the vast number of files of all types at the speed necessary. Unfortunately, from what I have seen and from comments that have come from persons within the NHS, the system has the usual problems when the Government gets its hands on IT.”

"I think the use of IT in the NHS should be a wonderful thing,” said Joe. “Most people who work for government departments… know very little about how an IT system works, or how much it costs.”

Richard added that the way the NHS system has happened has hurt his faith in the government to roll-out other systems. “After messing up on the NHS Computers the Government plans to bring in the ID card scheme. From discussions from people who have the inside track on this I have become increasingly worried about this.”

But IT facilities manager Mike said all the work and trouble will be worth it, in the end. “I think people will welcome the time when everything is electronic, from the notes the doctors write at the bottom of your hospital bed, the nurses working on the ward, half being agency staff, to the doctor just about to operate on you and back out to your GP."

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Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust Chooses Xerox for Document Management

The Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust has announced a £6 million agreement with Xerox to optimise its fleet of imaging and printing devices. The jointly developed solution will provide the NHS Trust greater visibility and control over its printing operations, which will in turn enable it to release more funds for patient healthcare and reduce the environmental impact of its office equipment.

Sheffield Teaching Hospitals is the largest foundation trust and the second largest healthcare provider in the UK. With over 13,000 employees and over a million patient episodes every year, the organisation currently uses more than 3,200 output devices for its printing, faxing, copying and scanning needs. Xerox analysed the Trust’s output usage and identified that under its current solution, the ratio of workers to devices is 3:1 and therefore costly and inefficient. Under the terms of the agreement, Xerox will consolidate the output devices and install a fully outsourced printing infrastructure. The first phase of this approach will reduce the worker to device ratio to 5:1 and establish a framework that can achieve a long-term ratio of 10:1. Xerox anticipates that the project will save the Trust between £1.3m - £3m over a seven year period.

David Whitham, Informatics Director said: “With Xerox’s print management solution we will have greater control over our printing operation. We will know what is being printed, how much it costs and be able to provide our employees with the tools they need to work more productively. Xerox will also help us improve our recycling process by more effectively managing our devices, consumables and disposables.”

Xerox will install its own personnel on site, to provide greater service level management, increased uptime and reliability. A utility pricing model will be put in place, meaning systems at Sheffield Teaching Hospitals will be fully managed by Xerox, and a single invoice will be generated each month. Web portal access will give staff at the Trust access to printers from their desktops, as well as user guides and online toner ordering facilities, improving efficiencies in the workflow process.

Peter Romaine, Director and General Manager for Xerox Global Services, Xerox UK, said: “Xerox fully understands the relentless pressures put on organisations like the Sheffield Teaching Hospitals to meet their operational and financial targets. Rather than installing all Xerox products, our role is to optimise and then manage the existing fleet of devices. The Trust will see significant sustainability and cost improvements, allowing for much needed investment in patient care.”

By Ip_philipphaberl on Tuesday Dec 2

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