The NHS information technology (IT) and social care review 2009: a synopsis.

BACKGROUND England's National Health Service information technology (NHS IT) has been much criticised in a number of major governmental and non-governmental reports. The author was requested to write a review of NHS IT to help formulate policy. OBJECTIVE To identify what had worked and should be continued and what was unhelpful and should be dropped from NHS IT. METHOD Iterative process of debate with a committee of experts. RESULTS The theme areas which emerged were: • the central importance of the record to serving individual patient care, and that this should be top priority • development of systems should be carried out as close as possible to the front-line clinicians who use them • standards and frameworks are useful centralised functions; whereas imposing detailed technical solutions across large geographical areas is unlikely to succeed and should be abandoned. CONCLUSIONS IT should be seen as a clinical tool in health care, developed to meet the needs of patients and front-line clinicians.