By silicon.com, 30 September 2003 16:05
NEWS 30.09.98: An enterprising group of doctors from Oxfordshire have launched a dedicated web service which provides UK practitioners with free email and research facilities. Leading the Doctors Net UK project is Dr Neil Bacon who said online tools are fast becoming central to everyday medicine. "In five years time it will be impossible to practice medicine without being on the net," he said. IBM was contracted to build and host the site. CIX and UUNet were also considered but Bacon favoured IBM's Lotus Notes and Domino-based environment. Funding came from two local businessmen who are motivated by their "belief in the NHS" rather than profit, said Bacon. 30.09.03: So is it possible to practice medicine now without being on the net? The answer is yes, but only just - and it'd be an ignorant GP who doesn't see the advantages. At the time of writing, silicon.com's top story was all about delays in the NHS' IT programme. Nothing new there, you say, only now using tech to overhaul Europe's largest organisation has become the £2bn acid test for very large IT projects the world over, and nothing short of an issue the Labour government will stand or fall by. The days of local businessmen dipping into their pockets should be going - they probably won't, but the whole sector is maturing in terms of IT.
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