let's break this down shall we...
Couple years back they wanted to give all your medical records to be managed by an American company and they needed your permission to do so.
- said american company that is a data storage facility. you know, because we haven't got enough physical space over here to store EVERYONE EVER's physical paper notes while in the states they have... what happens is you send them a physical volume of notes, they store it in a f**k-off massive warehouse (securely) and scan it and send you a pdf file to attach to the nhs system thus saving a fair bit of physical space. no "giving them the notes" was happening
Then the NHS wanted your med records to be widely available to selected parties and again needed your consent
it would be SO MUCH better for NHS records to be widely available, then we wouldn't have the effing bureaucracy in getting hold of people's history if they're from a different part of the country or even from a different trust.
example: i work for CWP and when we get a patuient from norfolk, southampton or even liverpool we have to go through a lot of paperwork, money and messing about to get said patient's physical (or even digital) notes sent to us otherwise we don't know their medical history, allergies, section status etc.
Now they are getting more sneaky. You now have to opt out by contacting your GP and they only tell you this camoflagued in a glossy piece of mail that looks just like junk mail.
anyone can opt-out, but it benefits everyone if you don't
All for med info being available to help research but it will soon be like the internet that plagues you ads for things youve been looking at.
false: read all about the 'Data Protection Act 1998' and the NHS's code of confidentiality
also you speak as if the NHS is one big organisation, it's not any more, there's LOADS of smaller 'trusts' and what
was the PCT (Primary Care Trust) is now CCG's and LAT's (Clinical Commissioning Groups and Local Area Team's respectively) basically meaning that GP's in the area control the budget, not the government. so anything that happens at clatterbridge, arrowe park, etc etc right down to NHS dentists and other community services, GP's have control of their budget so if the GP's don't see a point of say, community mental health, and choose to cut it's budget, there's no govt paperwork, they can just do it, and are doing it... unfortunately.
so ultimately, sending your records to USA for physical storage and then getting a scanned document on a country-wide NHS system is a LOT more value than storing the records in a wing of a hospital that could be more wards or something... and a country-wide NHS system would be beneficial for everyone working for the NHS (please trust me on that)
that is all.
edit: oh and if you're moaning about your medical history being used for research, don't ever go to a hospital then... research has helped us cure a LOT of ailments and is continuing to do so. your records would be anonymous anyway. it would have a history and prescriptions and whatever, just no name. but even if there was a name on them, or even an nhs number, why complain? if someone turned to me and said "we're gonna get all your medical history (and for a 24 year old, trust me, i have a lot of it) and use it to research stuff" i'd stand aside and say "happily, please do" because preventing research is essentially you being selfish and difficult.