I was pleased to see this news in a UK Authority digital data and technology for the public good blog by Mark Say. NHS single patient record ‘should include audit trail’ | UKAuthority
https://www.ukauthority.com/articles/nhs-single-patient-record-should-in...
The NHS set up single patient records using Lloyd George fiolders that would fit in the pocket overcoat of GPs in 1928. The record was kept in the house of the family doctor who could refer to it at night and at weekends as well as during consultations. The record was transferred to the next GP when the patient moved house and the transfer of records took about 6 weeks in 1979 when I started General Practice, though by this time the record was less available, being locked in the GP Medical Centre..
It may be helpful to consider how differently the motor vehicle industry works. Each vehicle has VIN - vehicle identification number - also called a chassis or frame number used to identify vehicles defined by International Organization for Standardization in 2DO 3779. Each vehicle in the world has a unique identity referenced through the manufacturer and linked to a database of components and functions. Humans are working slowly towards this, having issues about confidentiality, crime, and distrust to deal with.
Patients and proxies seeing who has seen their record improves and strengthens information governance and trust, reduces the chance of undetected crime and assists information governance (Wikipedia - Information governance, or IG, is the overall strategy for information at an organization. Information governance balances the risk that information presents with the value that information provides. Information governance helps with legal compliance, operational transparency, and reducing expenditures associated with legal discovery. An organization can establish a consistent and logical framework for employees to handle data through their information governance policies and procedures. These policies guide proper behavior regarding how organizations and their employees handle information whether it is physically or electronically.)
Here is an excerpt from the UK authority blog:
"A single patient record for the NHS should include an audit trail to show who had accessed the data, according to the views of patients involved in discussions on the concept.
NHS England’s Transformation Directorate has outlined the position in a new report on the latest national engagement on data.
The exercise derived from the plan, announced in October 2024, for a single patient record in England’s NHS bringing together information on an individual’s health treatment and care into one place. It involved discussions with a core group of around 100 people, another 76 from ‘seldom heard groups’ and a survey of 2,000.
The report says the discussions conveyed enthusiasm for the concept of a single patient record, with participants seeing the benefits of better healthcare and improved efficiency. While they also raised concerns around data accuracy, privacy and security, the general view was that the benefits outweigh the risks.
Priorities emerged around the need for accountability in how the data is managed and used, patient choice in how the data is shared, a high level of security and transparency in the design and working of the record.
These have prompted policy recommendations including the inclusion of a record of access to provide an audit trail, and tiered access so only appropriate health and care professionals can see specific elements of the data."
HIFA profile: Richard Fitton is a retired family doctor - GP. Professional interests: Health literacy, patient partnership of trust and implementation of healthcare with professionals, family and public involvement in the prevention of modern lifestyle diseases, patients using access to professional records to overcome confidentiality barriers to care, patients as part of the policing of the use of their patient data Email address: richardpeterfitton7 AT gmail.com