Tim Kelsey at E-Health Insider Live '09

Tim Kelsey, chair of Dr Foster Intelligence, and a noted champion of the need for the state to hold and use personal data, has been announced as a keynote speaker at E-Health Insider Live ‘09.

In what promises to be a lively and provocative speech on Monday, 9 November, Kelsey will argue that the NHS must do far more to harness the possibilities opened up by the dramatic advances in digital media and communications that are reshaping society.

He will also argue that it is essential for public sector bodies to store and exchange personal data on citizens if they are to deliver effective services; but that they need to make the public case for this to be done.

He will also say that the public has a right to information on services, so people can make informed choices about their treatment and to shine a light on substandard care. “I’m on a mission from God to put patients in the driving seat,” he jokes.

Kelsey, a former news editor of the Sunday Times, is one of the UK’s most influential advocates of the need for public sector bodies to share information about and with citizens in order to deliver improved services.

Dr Foster first started publishing its Guide to Hospitals in 2001. “At the time, publishing comparative data on waiting lists and waiting times was revolutionary. Now it’s hard to imagine a time when it wasn’t published,” says Kelsey.

Since the initial Hospital Guide, Dr Foster has developed increasingly sophisticated performance measures and tools, which it now sells to trusts, primary care trusts and strategic health authorities. “The beating heart of our organisation is management information,” says Kelsey.

Dr Foster also launched the NHS Choices portal. In his speech, Kelsey will explain why he believes the NHS is still lagging badly behind on adopting techniques and approaches to modernise services.

One key strand of the future, he argues, lies with increasingly sophisticated modelling and forecasting of the health impact on the local population of different strategies and investments. “There is a fantastic opportunity to better use information to contribute to the local NHS,” he says.

9-10 November 2009, The ICC Birmingham

Tim Kelsey will be opening E-Health Insider Live '09 on Monday, 9 November.

E-Health Insider Live ’09 is the essential, two day exhibition and conference at The ICC in Birmingham. More than 60 exhibitors are booked for the exhibition, which also features a free best practice showcase.

The exciting conference programme, whose principal sponsor is BT, has four streams exploring “the big picture” on healthcare IM&T, benefits realisation, digital patient care and healthcare interoperability.

And there’s no need to be stuck in your hotel overnight, because E-Health Insider has organised at great comedy night at Jongleurs, which should be a fantastic entertainment and networking opportunity. Register now.