Organisation of General Practice: Implications for IM&T in the NHS

Abstract

The increasing use of information technology in the NHS has implications for security and confidentiality, and is the subject of widespread discussion. The nature and organisation of general practice in the NHS has implications for the implementation of any information management system involving information technology in general practice. This paper is an attempt to outline the structure of general practice in the NHS, and to suggest factors which may influence the implementation of the IM&T Strategy and any agreed security policy in General Practice — the level at which most confidential patient information is gathered and stored and may be, eventually, transmitted to others.