Becoming a chief information officer in the NHS is a big step. To recognise this, the Health CIO Network is putting together a handbook for health CIOs. If you would like to contribute to a chapter, or have a great idea for one, then contact Digital Health managing editor Lyn Whitfield.
IT in the NHS is a classic case of creeping development. Technical things have come along, innovative people have adapted them for use, and organisations have started to rely on them. Hey presto, they are "mission critical.”
During this period, an array of geeks, managers, dabblers, IT specialists and informatics professionals have, as the eminent Gwyn Thomas once remarked, "wandered in.”
There have been a number of attempts along the way to get us all aligned; the UK Council for Health Informatics Professions (UKCHIP) to name but one. However, at last it feels like we are starting to see some real traction.
In part, that’s the result of the precipitation of a crisis: we now understand that an IT disaster is a real disaster that could lead to a major incident. Result! Well, not really. We need to get going on the agenda of professionalism that aims rather higher than that.
We need to get going on developing the skills that are truly fit for a 21st century health service; one that is more and more an information business, and wishes to exchange more and more data within a challenging environment of increasing threats. Oh and by the way we need to save £22 billion.
Leadership is going to be absolutely crucial in the next phase of digitisation of the service. Most of us who are already chief information officers will not see this through to the end. Will it ever be really finished?
There needs to be a focus on developing new leaders from the ranks of those who are coming into the "profession.” Those new people need a structure, a framework. We cannot rely on a conveyor belt of talented people who just keep "wandering in.”
The Health CIO Network is, among other things, an attempt to harness the collective power and give direction to the new breed of informatics leaders. It is also an attempt to give the profession a real voice within a competing landscape.
The CIO should not be sitting in a data centre watching a series of flashing lights. In fact, the technology part of the role should probably be more and more in the background.
My message, therefore, is use your voice. It is the most powerful weapon you have. Get out more. Lead your team. Find new leaders. In doing that, I hope you find this guide useful.
Adrian – Ade – Byrne is director of IM&T at University Hospital Southampton NHS Foundation Trust which, he says, has been working on its IT environment for 15 years.
On his LinkedIn profile, he says its aim is to “build an electronic patient record with full decision support, sharing data across disparate, so-called best of breed systems.” The trust is also developing a patient record and services, built on Microsoft HealthVault.
