>In any case, the BMA position is still that connecting clinical systems
>to the NHSnet is unethical.
This is an interesting paraphrasing of the position as I understand
it. Connection of clinical systems to NHSnet is surely no more or
less unethical that connecting them to the Internet or Racal
HealthLink or a dial-up modem - methinks its the rather larger issues
relating to policies on what information should be exchanged and who
should be the guardians/owners of that info etc that are the source
of BMA concern, not the transport medium.
If adequate security and confidentiality measures/framworks etc are
put in place, as per the many recent discussions here on this topic,
then the ability to provide controlled wide area access to clinical
systems has many potential benefits (and I'm not talking straight
financial one here). The next interesting question then is whether
under such circumstances NHSnet is a necessary transport medium or
whether other wide area networking, the Internet even, would be OK.
The way things are moving in the Internet world, the technical
solutions required to meet the BMAs concerns will, I suspect, be
unlikely to need a dedicated "secure" network.
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Rob Tweed
IM&T Consulting Ltd; Health Web Services Ltd;
M/Gateway Developments Ltd
http://www.hwsl.co.uk/mgw
Tel: (+44) 181 540 1325
Fax: (+44) 181 715 4337
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