Press release
New resource lets patients see what their doctor sees
Have you ever wished that there was just one place to find reliable information about your health condition? The good news is that it’s no longer necessary to trawl through a vast array of websites to find out more about your symptoms and the treatment options available to you.
The Map of Medicine is an online tool, available through the NHS, which holds accurate medical information in just one place.
Map of Medicine Healthguides, delivered as part of the National Programme for IT, present the different steps of a patient journey, from symptoms to diagnosis and treatment, in regularly updated charts. They are designed to support patients in understanding more about their condition safe in the knowledge that this is fully endorsed by the UK’s leading clinical experts.
The aim is that these Healthguides will empower patients with information about their own care; they can be used for self-education or as a basis for conversations with healthcare professionals. It is now easier than ever to access this cutting edge resource, as it can be viewed for free on NHS Choices at www.nhs.uk
Dr. Jerry Martin, Commissioning Board Chairman, NHS Bury said; “Patients often want to find out more about their condition and the internet is commonly used as a source for this information. However not every website is accurate and up-to-date which can be misleading. That’s why I would always direct my patients to the Map of Medicine as I know that it contains the latest information from trusted sources such as NICE.”
ENDS
Date: 30th June 2009
For further information please contact Caroline Dearden, Corporate Communications Manager, NHS Bury on 0161 762 3106 or email communications@bury.nhs.uk
Notes to editor:
- The Map of Medicine is a nationally-available tool for NHS England and is available free at the point of use to all NHS, Social Care and related bodies, as well as the general public.
- The maps provide a visualisation of the ideal, evidence-based patient journey for nearly 400 conditions, with the ability for local communities to customise the pathways to reflect local care provisions and clinical practice.
- The Map has been procured by NHS Connecting for Health, a national agency of the Department of Health, that is supporting local NHS organisations to deliver the National Programme for IT. Over a ten year period (which began in 2004) this programme will connect GPs, hospitals and other NHS facilities and change the way the NHS works. Other developments include Electronic Transfer of Prescriptions, Picture Archiving and Communications System (PACS) which allows digital storage of X-rays and other images, GP2GP and many more.
For more information about the Map of Medicine in NHS Bury please contact Gemma Wantling NE Sector NPfIT Communication Lead on 0161 655 1736.
For information about the National Programme for Information Technology (NPfIT) in England please visit www.connectingforhealth.nhs.uk