Much will be written about the NHS Future Forum’s report out today.  And a lot of it will be preoccupied with its recommendation that health professionals should proactively give patients all-round health advice.

Personally, I think it a good idea although you’d have thought the Forum has advocated ‘in your face healthcare’ judging by some of the reactions.

The Forum’s report covers a wide agenda.  So, just to highlight the Forum’s recommendations on information which seem very grounded and sensible and which read as follows:

Information

• Patients should have access to their online GP-held records by the end of this Parliament.
• The NHS must move to using its IT systems to share data about individual patients and service users electronically in the interests of high quality care.
• The Government should set a clear deadline within the current Parliament by which all information about clinical outcomes is put in the public domain.

The Government’s 2015 deadline for giving patients online access to their medical records is an exciting if not liberating one.  But it is to the credit of the Forum that they have challenged the Government to come up with a proper project plan to make that happen.

Back later….