5th Report - NHS financial sustainability
Select Committee
Public Accounts Committee
HC 350
29 January 2025
Recommendations
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Conclusions (2) Observations and findings — click to expand
7
Conclusion
Rejected
Despite ambitions to improve productivity through the introduction of new technologies, the switch to digital in parts of the NHS has been glacially slow. Digital and technological improvements could have a transformative effect on the NHS. However, NHSE’s investment in technology over the period 2022–23 to 2024–25 stalled because funding …
Government Response Summary
The government disagrees with the recommendation, arguing against providers being 'fully paperless' due to digital inclusion considerations. It reports that 91% of secondary care trusts have Electronic Patient Records, forecast to reach 96% by March 2026, and fax machines will be unusable by 2027 due to analogue switch-off.
26
Conclusion
Rejected
We asked what was being done to improve productivity through the use of new technologies. NHSE told us the NHS currently lacks a consistent data infrastructure and that NHS providers varied in terms of their levels of technological maturity.50 NHSE said that it was putting modern technology into some of …
Government Response Summary
The government disagrees that providers should be fully paperless, stating that some patient communications must be sent by letter and outlines investment in national IT systems, EPRs and the NHS app.