Computing, data, and the role of general practitioners and general practice in England

Abstract

This paper gave attention to two issues that arise because of the growth in the use of health data by general practitioners (GPs) and general practices in England. The issues were (a) the use and commercialisation of patients’ personal health data; and(b) the propensity of GPs and general practice staff, in utilising those data, to see patients as fragmented bodies rather than as ‘whole persons’. The paper included attention to the computing needs of general practice from the 1960s and notes the period of growth in GP computer use during the 1990s. The implications of recent increased computer use by GPs and general practices, as a contributor to the further scientification of health, were then explored. Significant is the fact that the paper finds consciousness, from the 1970s, of the two issues. Their importance was emphasised as the momentum increases around the utilisation and sharing of patient data. Related concerns about data privacy and confidentiality are highlighted. In this context, the paper recommended that further research be undertaken with urgency to explore the ways that caring relationships (that have been a hallmark of the work of GPs) can be safeguarded.