LMC conf to call for SCR to be dropped

The summary care
record roll out

GP representatives are to hear calls for the Summary Care Record to be abandoned at the national local medical committees’ conference next month.

The conference will also debate a call for the BMA to withdraw all cooperation with the SCR while records continue to be created using an implied consent model and demand that the BMA “formally and publicly abandon” its acceptance of an opt-out system.

Choose and Book, GP system choice and IT data security will also be debated at the two-day policy setting conference for the BMA’s General Practitioner Committee.

The LMCs’ conference’s existing policy on the SCR is that there should be explicit consent for sharing of patient identifiable data although the GPC accepted Connecting for Health’s consent to view model for limited roll-out provided there was an evaluation of the public information programme and the consent model was carefully piloted.

Next month’s LMCs conference agenda includes almost 30 motions on the SCR including a call from Camden and Islington LMC to withdraw cooperation and from Barnet for the roll-out to be halted “and money spent on front-line patient care.” Other LMCs will insist that all letters informing patients about the SCR include an opt-out from and return envelope and that the medico-legal consequences of inaccurate data on the SCR be explored.

Away from the SCR the conference will debate Choose and Book with a motion deploring its use as a tool to meet 18 week targets and claims that the Choose and Book system for two week cancer referrals does not work and should be abandoned.

Doncaster LMC has submitted a motion claiming that access to clinical IT is being restricted in some parts of the NHS “to force GPs into adopting one particular IT system” and calling for equal treatment for all practices with secure remote access, electronic transmission and filing of correspondence available to all GPs.

Dr Paul Wilson, chairman of Doncaster LMC, said GPs were concerned that the primary care trust was incentivising practices to use TPP’s SystmOne but the same funding was not available to practices on other systems.

He added: “I think the PCT is passing down the SHA’s policy of incentivising practices to move to TPP’s SystmOne and we feel it is not a level playing field.”

The conference, Dependable Care in Difficult Times, will talk place on 10 and 11 June at the Institute of Education, London.

Links

National LMCs conference agenda