By Nick Heath, 1 May 2009 17:32
NEWS
GPs could soon be just an instant message away after a project to upgrade NHS workers' email paved the way for the introduction of IM at the health service.
This week, the NHS announced it had completed the migration of more than 350,000 NHS email accounts to Microsoft Exchange as part of the NHSmail project.
Will Moss, programme head of NHSmail, said IM could be added to NHSmail as soon as next year.
"We would very much like to introduce things like instant messaging, VoIP and Microsoft SharePoint to enable people to collaborate, rather than just sending emails," Moss told silicon.com.
"They are very much things I would like to do. The first of those is instant messaging."
"I would love to do it in the next calendar year," he added.
Moss said he would first like to introduce IM for communication between NHS staff, followed by those between clinicians and patients.
"Clinicians are much keener on IM then they are on email because it's real-time and they like that interactivity."
Moss said the idea of adding IM to NHSmail had been partly inspired by its use in a Scottish city where there had been a large influx of non-English speaking immigrants.
"Unfortunately, the number of translators available to help the GPs cope with the needs of these healthcare patients were not enough," he said.
"They used video and IM to get a translator in one place hooked into a number of GP surgeries, so they could maximise the use of the translator services without them having to travel about.
"That is something that we would be very interested in pursuing if we get as far as doing IM."
Moss added that although IM, VoIP and SharePoint have been identified as future deliverables, funding is not yet in place.
Comments
There are 3 comments. Join the discussion
1. Chris Goodman
While the availability of email and IM communication within the NHS is an asset, it must be restricted to stop the man hours wasted on personal private use (and I see an awful lot of "joke" mail emanating from NHS addresses). IM within a facility is not necessary - internal telephone systems already exist.
2. anonymous
Ha-ha.
Considering then won't let you e-mail anyone within the NHS about anything, this is barking mad. Absolutely denied.
Is a doctor really going to break with a consultation to answer an IM from a patient. Who thinks up this rubbish ?
I would not say e-Communication denial is restricted to the NHS though, you are denied being able to e-mail - Tesco, British Gas, HSBC, Severn Trent Water, my local council, HMRC, my dentist, BT, Sky TV. Royal Bank of Scotland... ad nauseum.
others with anonymous 'customer facing' web-forms or 'chat' are: Amazon, Pixmania, Dabs.com, HMV, Play.com, John Lewis, Scottish Power, nPower etc the list goes on and on.....
For any B2C (that's business to customer in mumbo-jumbo speak), e-mail is generally denied as a method of communication, yes there are probably some reasobale reasons around security, but I use extensively at work for internal and to/from suppliers.
3. Richard
Surely, the current policy is to help immigrants to learn English, rather than to keep them isolated and unable to integrate?
So, why the continued need for so many translators?