Patients should see records online, NHS experts say

The NHS and healthcare would be transformed by putting patients' medical records on the web for them to see, senior NHS insiders have suggested.

At a roundtable discussion last week, a panel of experts said that patients would benefit, as they would be able to monitor their own health and treatment. In addition, they would be able to provide the records to doctors unfamiliar with the patient's history — in an emergency, for example.

While some health trusts have begun uploading electronic medical care records to a database, significant barriers remain, the experts said. For more on why the NHS should put records online, head over to silicon.com.