BMA: NHS staff advice system ‘not always heeded’

The British Medical Assocation (BMA) has said that although NHS advice have been given the opportunity to provide input into the new multi-billion pound Connecting for Health IT system, the advice has sometimes not been listened to and acted upon.

Dr Paul Cundy, the BMA’s joint chairman, told Channel Four’s News at Noon programme: “There’s distinction between consultation and implementing the advice you are given. Although that advice has been given, it’s not always been taken up.”

“I think what we want to see is more advice from people who are using those systems actually appearing in the systems that they’re designing,” he added.

The Connecting for Health system has been the subject of some controversy in recent weeks. Last week, the National Audit Office published a report that warned the new IT system could cost double the government’s original estimate for the system, which was 6.2 billion pounds.

Despite the concerns and condemnation over the handling of the project represented by some political parties, the chief executive of the NHS Confederation argued that the project still represented good value for money.

The confederation’s chief executive, Dr Gill Morgan, told BBC One’s Breakfast programme, remarked: “I think those hospitals and those doctors would tell you very strongly that it has been value for money.”

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