NHS bill paves way for single patient record

The NHS modernation bill, brought forward last week, would create a single patient record in England and cut bureaucracy, with ministers saying it would support safer and faster care.

The single patient record would mean all NHS providers, including hospitals and GPs, would have to share data so the right doctors, nurses and specialists across England can securely see a patient’s full medical history, no matter where they are treated.

Health minister Karin Smyth said: “The NHS modernisation bill paves the way for the single patient record, enabling patients to have real control over their care through a single, secure and authoritative account of their data for the first time ever.”

“It will be a game changer that means NHS staff can see patients’ medical records, allowing them to deliver better care faster and more conveniently, and even saving lives.

“We will also strip back bureaucracy by abolishing NHS England, empowering frontline staff as part of our 10 Year Health Plan.”

Clinicians could benefit from improved access to records as early as 2027 in specialties including maternity and frailty care.

For patients, this would mean they would not have to repeat their story unnecessarily.

It would result in safer, more co-ordinated care, with clinicians having the full picture when and where it is needed. It would support better care closer to home, joining up community services and helping people manage their conditions.

Patients would also have more control over their care and more transparency, with clear safeguards, audit trails and choice over how their data is used.

For clinicians, it would mean no more working with missing information or having to check in multiple places to find the same data, while it would mean greater efficiency and fewer costly mistakes for the NHS as a whole.

The bill would also formally transfer NHS England’s functions into the Department of Health and Social Care and the wider system, with the government saying this would help put power and resources in the hands of frontline NHS organisations.

Patient groups and organisations across the country have been calling for the kind of change the single patient record would deliver for more than a decade, with Dr Michael Cocker, consultant obstetrician at East Lancashire Hospitals NHS Trust, saying it would “set a new benchmark” for maternity care in the NHS.

Currently, women are required to go through their entire medical history in a first appointment with a midwife, which is reliant on memory and can create gaps in information as they move through their pregnancy. The single patient record would stop this issue at source, meaning clinicians can “provide safe care and personalised care”, he said.

Dr Maurice Cohen, consultant geriatrician at North Middlesex Hospital and clinical director at the London Frailty Network, said the single patient record would mean the NHS is “wrapping ourselves around the patient rather than the patient wrapping themselves around us”.

The bill would enable information related to a patient’s health and care to be processed for the purposes of establishing and operating the single patient record, with the public and healthcare professionals consulted throughout its design.

Dr Alec Price-Forbes, national chief clinical information officer at NHS England, said: “The single patient record will revolutionise patient care, giving all health and care professionals across the country a detailed record of a patient’s care in one place.

“For too long, patient information has been held in silos, leading to patients having to repeat their story multiple times in different care settings, creating the potential for duplication or gaps in understanding by those treating them, and understandable frustrations and a poor experience for patients.”

“The single patient record will be available to all health and care staff in real time, meaning patients get higher quality, safer, joined-up and more personalised care.”

“Robust protections will be built in, including different levels of access to reflect different needs and clear audit trails, ensuring the public can trust that their data is always secure.”

Alongside enabling the single patient record, the bill, formally called the Health Bill, would reduce bureaucracy by simplifying the NHS structure, including formally transferring NHS England’s functions into the Department of Health and Social Care and out to the wider system.

Local leaders have complained of “2 centres”, creating confusion and inertia and, most importantly, diluting democratic accountability for the NHS.

Abolishing NHS England would reduce duplication and free up resources to be reinvested in the frontline, with less time spent on administration and more time focused on delivering care.

Alongside this, changes would be made to streamline and strengthen the patient safety landscape, embed patient voices at the heart of national and local decision-making and empower integrated care boards and foundation trusts to deliver for patients.

These changes would put patients back at the heart of the health system, with clarified roles for local leaders and decision-making devolved to a local level, so those who understand the needs of their communities are trusted to shape and integrate services more effectively.

Jacob Lant, chief executive at National Voices, said: “Creating a single patient record across the NHS could be a game changer for patient safety and experience.

“Done well, it should reduce the burden on people having to repeat their story, help clinicians access the information they need, and support patients to feel that the NHS knows who they are and what matters to them.”

“This is a significant opportunity to make better use of existing patient data to support high-quality clinical research and improved service design.

“But any use of data beyond direct care must have clear safeguards, transparent rules on who can access information and why, and meaningful ways for people to exercise their rights.”

“It is therefore absolutely right that the creation of the single patient record is set out in the NHS modernisation bill, which means, unlike previous NHS data-sharing plans, this move can be properly scrutinised by Parliament, providing the transparency and accountability needed to build public confidence and trust.”