It's SEXY, from an IT/techie/geek point of view. It gets people really excited
about the possibilities of lots of new techie stuff going into people's homes.
It is also unaffordable, unmanageable, and the communications/security issues it
would raise would keep a good number of civil servants and NHS management types
occupied in assessing and developing and implementing it for many years to come.
With the current NPfIT program in imminent danger of imploding, this may be seen
to have certain attractions for these people ;-)

Laurie Miles

> -----Original Message-----
> From: GP-UK [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Mary Hawking
> Sent: 29 January 2007 9:47 am
> To: [log in to unmask]
> Subject: [GP-UK] Telemedicine in the Home
> 
> Does anyone know the Business Case/ need for this approach?
> Most of the successful trials have been based on simple measures -
> opening fridge doors, weight etc - being transmitted to a local team:
> I'm not sure that the massive work suggested by RG would actually be
> clinically useful!
> 
> Http://www.silicon.com/publicsector/0,3800010403,39165423,00.htm
> 
> "The NHS is planning to institute so-called telehealth systems in homes
> around the country.
> <Snip>
> Speaking to industry figures at a symposium on IT and healthcare in
> London, Granger also confirmed that "things going into people's homes is
> new scope", requiring additional budgeting beyond the original remit of
> the NHS' National Programme for IT (NPfIT).
> <Snip>
> Testing the telehealth systems for interoperability with the new
> national database of patient care records, called 'The Spine', would
> also be expensive, Granger added."
> 
> Not only expensive but technically difficult seeing the current state of
> the Spine!
> 
> "Granger said the existing security levels in place in hospitals today
> are on a par with those of the best banks, leading to some uncertainty
> over the security levels that will be supported by telehealth systems."
> 
> And I had thought that one of the selling points for CfH was that the
> existing paper records in hospitals - and the systems that support them
> - are hopelessly insecure!
> This makes me worry about my bank.. ;-<
> 
> "Granger told the symposium: "Are we going to do that with hundreds of
> thousands of unpaid carers and voluntary workers who work in people's
> homes? Maybe, maybe not.""
> 
> Hm. so if all these workers will have access without the security of
> smartcards and Role Based Access, how secure would *any* Summary Care
> Record be? And could a SCR carry enough information for day to day
> patient management?
> I thought the plans for a *detailed* medical record on the spine were
> permanently stalled?
> 
> MaryH
> --
> Mary Hawking


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