I have been contacted by constituents about NHS Digital and Patient Data.
As the Member of Parliament for Milton Keynes South, I have included below my response:
Technology is playing a central role in delivering the NHS Long Term Plan, helping clinicians use the full range of their skills, reducing bureaucracy, stimulating research, and enabling service transformation. Technology allows people to have more control over the care they receive and more support to manage their health, to keep themselves well and better manage their conditions, while assisting carers in their vital work.
NHS Digital functions legally transferred to NHS England on 1 February 2023. NHS England is consequently responsible for ensuring it meets its obligations to protect people’s data. Data protection law will continue to apply. This means there must always be a valid, lawful basis for the collection and processing of personal information including special category information within federated data platforms and any other NHS England IT system, as defined under data protection legislation. Data protection impact assessments must be carried out and privacy notices published which explain what data is collected, analysed and shared and for what purposes.
In May 2023, the Department of Health and Social Care published its guidance that sets out how NHS England will protect patient data, following the transfer of NHS Digital’s responsibilities. The guidance is available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/nhs-englands-protection-of-patient-data. Also, NHS England is legally required to report annually to Parliament on how well it has discharged its data functions. NHS England makes an annual Data Security and Protection submission which demonstrates how they meet data protection obligations.
The Government published its strategy Data Saves Lives: Reshaping Health and Social Care with Data in June 2022, which set out how digital capabilities will enable health and social care to be delivered in a much faster, more effective and more personalised way. This strategy is supported by the Government’s Plan for Digital Health and Social Care which outlined a £2 billion investment to digitise the NHS and at least £150 million to support digital transformation in social care.
The Government is enabling frontline clinicians to deliver care efficiently, effectively and safely through Electronic Patient Record (EPR) systems. By March 2025, 100 per cent of NHS trusts should have EPRs in place. In September 2022, the Government published its Our Plan for Patients strategy. This strategy committed to using joined-up data and digital tools to increase patient choice and operational productivity, as well as freeing-up time to allow carers to care by using IT to reduce bureaucracy.
Thank you to those constituents who took the time to contact me about this issue.
