So they've finally heard of the Royal Flying Doctor Service?

(Link below to RFDS web page on remote consultations.)

http://www.flyingdoctor.net/Remote-Medical-Consultations.html

Let me know when a Government Minister gets into the 21st Century. We've got to be ready.

Quote:- "We have as our mission statement, as you call it these days, to coordinate policies and develop a coherent strategy to ensure that all citizens – especially the disadvantaged – benefit from the use of digital technologies,"

Reminds me of the Yes Minister sketch on the integrated travel policy for the UK. I laughed my socks off at that and I suspect as this committee continues its "work" I shall be laughing again.

MInes the one with the one way ticket to New Zealand in the pocket

...that the Government gets it's own house in order with regard to IT projects before it tries to sort out "the disadvantaged".

Telemedicine is getting an NHS operator on the line when you call for an emergency ambulance. She will put you on hold until you no longer need the ambulance, thus saving everyone in government money they can throw out elsewhere on, say, taxi fares for Ken Livingstone, or expensive consultants.

It would be nice if that lot could be snapped out of BS mode into action mode, but the switch for that appears to have been removed. In privately funded surgery, of course..

I'll have the white coat please.

They claim to have a "Mission Statement"

We ARE all fucked then!

.... and for how much?

"In his first speech as minister for digital inclusion, Paul Murphy MP said: "We are going to be working very hard between now and the summer recess to see if we can come out with government plan which all of us can related to."" .

Hmmm? Is that a typo, El Reg, or accurate verbatim? MPs and Ministers are such slippery customers, it is always as well to get right to the heart of everything they say to find out HOW they are going to do what they say. Invariably they themselves have the slightest clue and are merely passing the buck to others ....who sadly also haven't a baldy notion about Good Governance either.

Are we to interpret it as a government plan which all of can relate to, suggesting a government plan in digital matters [a bit like getting foreign immigrant cockle pickers to defuse a ticking bomb] or a government plan which we can be related to digitally, which would suggest a Third Party Plan, hopefully prepared by experts in the Field.

Anything less will most surely be a resounding failure and a complete and utter waste of funding, not that that is of any consideration in virtual matters of course, nor apparent in "real life" either given the ease with which billions are lost/mislaid/spirited away and simply replaced with a nod and a wink between dodgy friends and wannabe Kings.

have you seen the plotlines in Holby City these days?

Of course, they're going to ensure that more communities are isolated from healthcare by a deliberate policy of forcing doctors' surgeries to amalgamate into polyclinics which can then be flogged off to private health schemes

http://www.monbiot.com/archives/2008/04/29/the-great-consolidation-2