Key takeaways
A single view of every patient
The proposed Single Patient Record aims to give patients and clinicians seamless access to a complete, joined-up view of NHS patient data – without moving it from existing systems.
Big ambitions, but details still to come
The Health Bill sets the legal framework but the crucial decisions – including what data is shared and by which organisations – will follow in future regulations.
Opportunities balanced by concerns
MPs have asked questions around privacy, access to data and private sector involvement. The next phase of scrutiny will be critical.
The proposals in the Health Bill to support a Single Patient Record (SPR) have generated a lot of discussion. In this article, we explain what’s being proposed and what’s next.
The Vision
The government’s 10-Year Plan for the NHS sets an ambitious goal:
“For the first time ever in the NHS, give patients real control over a single, secure and authoritative account of their data… to enable more co-ordinated, personalised and predictive care.”
The Secretary of State (SoS) has explained that the SPR:
“…does not move data from one system to another; it preserves the data where it is, and builds links between systems so that one person, whether a clinician or a patient, can see all the data at once.”
In simple terms, the aim is to enable access to all of a patient’s NHS information together in one place. Healthcare professionals treating a patient would be able to access that patient’s full NHS record, regardless of where care was provided. Patients would also be able to see all their NHS data from one place.
Where we are now
Today, patient information is held across multiple organisations – GP practices, hospitals, ambulance services and social care providers – all using different systems.
There have been efforts to connect these systems and allow data sharing. While some have worked well, they have generally taken significant time and investment. They have also been limited to sharing across local or regional footprints.
There is a national dataset that is used for patient care: the Summary Care Record (SCR). This contains key information (like medications and allergies) and is often used for urgent or out-of-hours care. However, the information it holds is limited, and patients can opt out.
What the Health Bill proposes
The Health Bill does not create the SPR directly. Instead, it gives the SoS powers to introduce it through future regulations.
Those regulations could:
require or allow organisations to share patient data into the SPR
impose fines for failing to comply
set aside the usual duty of confidentiality when data is used in the SPR in line with the regulations.
Before becoming law, those regulations must be consulted on and then approved by both the House of Commons and the House of Lords. So there is the potential for further debate once the Health Bill has gone through Parliament.
What we don’t know yet
The detail is still to come. The regulations will set out:
which organisations are covered
what data must be shared
how the system will operate in practice
what penalties might apply.
In parliament, concerns have been raised about the number of people able to view the SPR, privacy safeguards and private sector involvement in delivery. Those concerns may lead to amendments being proposed to the Bill, or they may be addressed later in the anticipated regulations.
Final thoughts
The SPR would be a significant shift in how NHS data is accessed and shared. While the vision is clear, the detail – and the safeguards – will be critical. As the Bill is considered by parliament, the SPR provisions will be closely watched by both information governance professionals and the wider healthcare community.
Our Health and Social Care team will continue to share updates, insights and analysis as the Health Bill progresses through parliament and visit our Data and Privacy page for more information on how we can support your organisation.
