SCR evaluation costs £1m

Health minister Mike O’Brien has revealed that University College London will be paid very nearly £1m for its evaluations of the Summary Care Record and HealthSpace.

In a written answer in response to a question from Conservative health spokesman Stephen O’Brien, the minister said the cost of the first study into the SCR’s pilot sites was £272,000.

The ethnographic study by a team led by Professor Trisha Greenhalgh highlighted a “gap” between the assumptions made about the SCR and its use in practice.

It also highlighted confusion over the SCR’s consent model. This was subsequently changed, so that although patients must still ‘opt out’ of having an SCR, they must also give their ‘consent to view’ when it is used.

The written answer says that “further research has been commissioned from UCL to assess the implementation and impact of the SCR and HealthSpace and to illuminate ongoing learning as SCRs begin to be implemented more widely.”

The outcome of this work, which cost a further £723,400, is “undergoing quality assurance and peer review and is due for publication later this year.”

Five strategic health authorities including London are currently rolling out the SCR amid a renewed row about informing the public and gaining their consent. The BMA has called for the roll-out to be halted.

Earlier this week, it emerged that just 752 patients have created an advanced HealthSpace account and used it to view their SCR in the areas in which it is available.

Link: Hansard