The NHS Confederation is working with Connecting for Health, the organisation implementing the massive £6.2billion investment in information technology in the NHS.

The NHS Confederation remains committed to the implementation of an electronic patient record that can be shared because it will have huge benefits to patient safety.

Our key priority is to ensure our members are fully engaged in the programme, especially at local level and among clinicians. This means not only ensuring members are kept up-to-date on the programme but that the programme is kept up-to-date on members' views.

The National Programme for IT (NPfIT) will transform the way the NHS in England operates by ensuring delivery of efficient, high-quality information that will benefit patients. Apart from the military, the 10-year programme is the most complex in any public sector.

We believe it is vital to reach an agreement on what constitutes good local engagement. With the demands of clinicians and the service changing and the need for organisations to change the ways things are done, implementation has been slow in some areas. Also, although a National Audit Office report has highlighted great improvement in terms of clinical engagement at a national level, local engagement involving 1.3 million staff is significantly more difficult.

We are working to communicate the benefits to the public to ensure confidence in the security and confidentiality of the system. We are also surveying members' experiences of implementation of the programme, especially its timetable. The NHS Confederation is involved in the Information taskforce convened by Ministers.

NHS Confederation policy

The NHS Confederation has responded to the National Audit Office report.

How we involve members

The NHS Confederation hosts regular meetings with Connecting for Health, members and stakeholders to help in the clinical engagement of the national programme. Briefings have also been produced for members to ensure they are up-to-date on the progress of the programme.

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