NHS Direct Online in 2003
A year after telling us about the multichannel developments in NHS
Direct (May 2002 issue), Paul Jenkins and Bob Gann update
us on the progress made by NHS Direct Online’s service providers.
keywords: nhs direct online,
public information services, health education.
abstract
The NHS Direct Online web-based information service is
expanding rapidly and is being used by many more people.
A main focus has been development of a personalised service for users
including expansion of the Online Enquiry Service, originally explicitly
for providing general care information, to provide ‘web chat’ contact
with a nurse. It is also piloting a personal healthcare organiser called
‘My NHS HealthSpace’, a secure web environment in which users can record
their own medical and healthcare information and request email or text
messaging reminders about their appointments and medication.
NHS Direct Online has gained the 2003 eEurope eHealth Award for
empowering citizens in management of health and wellbeing.
A recent review by the Commission for Health Improvement concluded
that it has “achieved a great deal in a relatively short time. It is a
dynamic and forward-thinking organisation that embraces new ideas and
concepts.”
Br J Healthcare Comput Info Manage 2003; 20(6): 25–7. |
