Appointments & access

20 Aug 2026 What happens to your referral Triage that works, referral management that the evidence says doesn't, waiting-list validation paid by the patient removed, and the fact that nothing anywhere defines what work belongs in general practice.

14 Aug 2026 The workload the formula can't see Appointments at record levels, GP numbers below 2015, sessions that run six hours, and a population aged 90+ up more than half in twenty years — set against a funding formula built in 2004 on 1990s data.

5 Jul 2026 As well as writing AI tips, I've really been using AI to learn how useful it can be. LinkedIn Shares an appointment simulator he built showing how same-day slot holdback and workforce mix trade off patient access, continuity and GP workload.

7 Sept 2025 Can we get rota management in EMIS? LinkedIn Asks whether any rota management software can push its generated schedules directly into EMIS appointment books, suspecting a weak API means an RPA workaround is needed.

27 Mar 2025 Do you use GPteamnet at your surgery?' LinkedIn Reviews GPteamnet without much enthusiasm, but welcomes its new Huddle app giving direct access to holidays and practice information.

27 Mar 2025 Time to Allow Specialist Nurses to Sign Death Certificates? LinkedIn Argues palliative care specialist nurses, who often know dying patients best, should be able to propose causes of death for certificates, and that the paper-heavy certification process needs proper IT.

20 Mar 2025 Interesting post. Agree with Gus - a practice's commitment to triage and whether or not… LinkedIn Neil argues practices too often accept the 'free' CSU or ICB IT product instead of assessing fit, and should invest proactively in tools that work.

1 Mar 2025 In the post below I talk about the need to have a richer more nuanced coding system. LinkedIn Warns that expanding GP Connect record access risks over-sharing sensitive data, and asks whether role-based access or AI could curate it.

12 Feb 2025 Benefits of API to ICE LinkedIn Calls for a proper API to Clinisys ICE so practices can automate test ordering for repeat prescriptions and DMARD monitoring instead of manual box-ticking.

14 Jul 2024 My comment would be while Ai interpretation may speed some aspects up don’t assume that… LinkedIn Argues AI image interpretation alone won't fix radiology delays, as reported scans often go unviewed until a later appointment.

3 Jul 2024 Are GPs spending their time wisely? LinkedIn Argues GPs should prioritise proactive screening and chronic disease management over instant access for minor ailments, and questions the gatekeeper role.

17 May 2024 Why aren't we seeing major insights from big data? LinkedIn Asks why healthcare gleans so little insight from big data when other industries learn so much from their customer systems.

14 May 2024 Practice moves to Blinx Solutions LinkedIn Reports the practice's switch to Blinx Paco for automated call/recall with online booking and pre-appointment forms, and asks why ICE has no API to automate blood test ordering.

8 May 2024 4 documents published today about access in general practice - more reading! LinkedIn Flags four documents on general practice access published the same day, with a promise to share anything interesting found.

5 Apr 2024 Dr Murray Ellender any comments? LinkedIn Defends online triage systems against being judged by one failed case, given their value in coping with relentless demand.

24 Jan 2024 This last week has been crazy - loads of Docs off sick - an explosion of minor illness -… LinkedIn Describes a punishing week of staff sickness and minor-illness demand, arguing for Fuller Centres and walk-in capacity.

1 Nov 2023 Over the last 6 months or so I've heard of several staff from nearby practices leave and… LinkedIn Warns that departing staff deleting EMIS and shared-drive files exposes weak access controls and leaver policies.

20 Sept 2023 EMIS have put this info in a newsletter: in case you havent seen it:' LinkedIn Relays an EMIS newsletter on Web 9.22's new GPAD appointment exception flag, supporting the ACC-08 two-week booking IIF indicator.

24 Jul 2023 Are millions really waiting more than 2 weeks to see a GP? LinkedIn Picks apart a Guardian headline claiming 38 million wait over two weeks for a GP, tracing it to misread GPAD data and warning against targets built on bad statistics.

19 Jul 2023 Locally there is a lot of confusion over what the £13500 transformation money is for and… LinkedIn Explains the £13,500 transformation funding tied to the Modern General Practice digital triage programme, and questions its fairness.

7 Jul 2023 Digital Transformation Leads Forum LinkedIn Notes from a forum of over 100 ARRS-funded Digital and Transformation Leads, setting out eight priorities from cloud telephony and GPAD data quality to hub working and staff training.

11 May 2023 Definition of an online consultation LinkedIn Poses a string of questions exposing how ill-defined 'online consultation' is — does an email, a triaged appointment request or a text about a result count, and must it be two-way or live?

10 May 2023 Online Consultation Definition LinkedIn A string of questions probing what actually counts as an online consultation — does it need to be two-way, patient-initiated, live, or recorded in the EPR?

30 Mar 2023 Capacity and Access Framework LinkedIn Why paying PCNs to improve on a patient-experience baseline risks penalising high performers — regression to the mean, small samples and awkward income splits between practices.

20 Dec 2022 GP Appointment Data Released LinkedIn First impressions of the newly published national GP appointment data: it debunks the myth GPs aren't seeing patients but misses unmet demand, outcomes and frequent attenders.

8 Nov 2022 GP Records to be Turned on Again LinkedIn On the 2022 stand-off over prospective patient access to GP records: NHS England instructed system suppliers to switch it on, raising questions about who is really the data controller.

27 Sept 2022 Supporting GPs in winter document is out - headlines are' LinkedIn Summarises the Supporting GPs in Winter document and argues most measures are already under way and unlikely to help.

30 Jul 2022 Did you know that our free to use How2.training website not only has videos on using EMIS… LinkedIn Highlights the free How2.training site's videos on EMIS Web, other GP IT systems and manager topics like CQRS, now also on YouTube.

24 Jul 2022 The current tax rules mean that some doctors (hospital docs as well as GPs) basically… LinkedIn Argues that pension tax rules penalising extra work worsen NHS waiting lists, and urges support for a petition to change them.

7 Apr 2022 Support for PCNs in delivering Enhanced Access LinkedIn A Howbeck Healthcare case study on helping ten PCNs deliver Enhanced Access with a practice-based model, EMIS enterprise consultations and Apex activity monitoring.

11 Feb 2022 an interesting new feature that I plan on trying out at my surgery - love the idea of… LinkedIn Plans to trial a feature that texts patients a link letting them self-book into a chosen clinic type, easing reception load.

20 Dec 2021 just been thinking about turning on Record View in accuRx - it strikes me this would work… LinkedIn Suggests accuRx's Record View could give home-working GPs basic remote access, and calls for record write-back and EPS prescribing.

16 Dec 2021 Locally we are thinking absolute worst case (plan for the worst and hope for the best) -… LinkedIn Sketches a worst-case plan for a single shared triage hub letting clinicians from any local practice cover appointments if staff absences soar.

1 Dec 2021 Recording of GP Appointment Data LinkedIn Welcomes moves to standardise how GP appointment data is recorded, and argues the appointment book deserves a ground-up redesign with e-triage and messaging built in rather than bolted on.

14 Sept 2021 Do any of the e-triage solutions have a interface for receptionists to use? LinkedIn Asks whether any e-triage system offers a receptionist-facing form, so phone callers are triaged the same way as online requests.

24 Jul 2021 Direct Book Appointment lists are coming LinkedIn A brief note after meeting Iatro's Thomas Porteus: his surgery plans to trial One Contact software offering direct booking into real and virtual appointment lists.

9 Jul 2021 Really interesting stuff here on GP Access: https://lnkd.in/dDYP9Da' LinkedIn Weighs claims about GP access that demand is finite and predictable, arguing that working at scale smooths capacity variation.

21 May 2021 GP practices - do you think you are working harder than ever before? LinkedIn Shows how mis-configured appointment slot types make a busy practice look under-worked in GPAD data, and plugs free how2.training videos.

7 May 2021 Today we launching How2.training. LinkedIn How2.training launches with around 80 free videos on primary care IT systems and the GPAD programme, funded by Cheshire and Merseyside HCP.

17 Mar 2021 Another view: of Covid-19 vaccinations Frontline account of standing up Covid hot hubs, home pulse oximetry and PCN vaccination sites, and why EMIS Enterprise searches disagreed with regional data on who needed the jab.

15 Dec 2020 We have launched a whole series of videos aimed at teaching people Search and Reports in… LinkedIn Announces a free video series teaching Searches and Reports in EMIS Web and invites feedback from users.

2 Oct 2020 Returning to work since lockdown Surveys how Covid transformed general practice — empty waiting rooms, video consulting, virtual locums — predicts working at scale, and asks whether GPs should give up urgent care.

27 Jul 2020 on www.howbeckhow2.co.uk we are giving free access to our learning videos to all NHS… LinkedIn Howbeckhow2 opens its healthcare IT training videos free to all NHS staff and invites suggestions for new topics to cover.

22 Jun 2020 The end of online private GPs? LinkedIn Suggests NHS practices' rapid adoption of video consulting undercuts private online GP firms, and asks whether practice boundaries and home-visit entitlements should go to allow online superpractices.

1 Apr 2020 Lot of people talking about a lot of home visits being needed to be done by hot teams… LinkedIn Argues COVID home-visiting 'hot teams' need cleanable mobile devices running EMIS Mobile that work with or without signal.

25 Mar 2020 OK some areas/PCNs/practices are setting up Hot centres and Cold centres and telephone… LinkedIn Notes covid hot, cold and triage sites expose EMIS gaps in cross-practice logins and sending EPS prescriptions via enterprise consultations.

14 Mar 2020 Been playing with the new accuRx video functionality for general practices. LinkedIn Reviews accuRx's browser-based video consultations, praising screen sharing, multi-party rooms and its Covid screening tool.

3 Mar 2020 How the new GP / PCN contract is likely to impact on general practice LinkedIn Analysis of the 2020 GP contract: practices carry significant new obligations while most financial benefit flows to PCNs, so PCNs must convert ARRS roles into real practice support.

14 Feb 2020 My local AHSN are looking to put on an event ?2nd April highlighting companies that have… LinkedIn Seeks companies innovating in assessment, referral and triage pathways for an AHSN showcase event in April.

23 Sept 2019 Seeing one record / Sharing data nightmares A rant on record-sharing contradictions: no way to grant access to a single patient's record, stale sharing agreements, staff snooping and the burden of redacting notes.

5 Sept 2019 My latest digital health article is out. LinkedIn Links a Digital Health column venting about the confusion of record-access and data-sharing rules in primary care.

21 Jun 2019 I've always felt SCR had lots of advantages over local shared record depositories. LinkedIn Neil welcomes community pharmacists gaining easier access to the Summary Care Record, which he rates over local shared record systems.

11 Jun 2019 Good article. Its interesting that my local acute trust has refused to use nhs mail given… LinkedIn Notes a local acute trust rejecting NHS Mail for Office 365, while agreeing neither is the perfect tool.

23 May 2019 NHS Digital reports that community pharmacists now have better access to SCR Welcomes NHS Digital giving community pharmacists one-click smartcard access to the Summary Care Record, preferring the national scheme over county-based shared records.

23 May 2019 Another View: On whether a GP-contract-driven change is going to come A close reading of the 2019/20 GP contract's digital ambitions — data sharing, 111 direct booking, activity dashboards — concluding much of it is hot air rather than real change.

23 Mar 2019 Apple’s iWatch now does ECGs in the UK LinkedIn First impressions of the Apple Watch ECG feature arriving in the UK: easy PDF export makes it a useful triage and screening tool despite doubts over interpretation accuracy.

19 Oct 2018 Thought piece on improving access to consultants and diagnostics Signposts his GE Healthcare thought piece on improving the links between primary and secondary care, including access to consultant advice and diagnostics.

14 Aug 2018 Should every practice have an MRI scanner? LinkedIn Asks why limb and extremity MRI scanners aren't more widespread, and whether one in every GP practice would speed musculoskeletal diagnosis and cut wasted appointments.

14 Aug 2018 FENO testing finally coming LinkedIn Announces that every practice in South Cheshire and Vale Royal CCGs can have a NICE-recommended FeNO machine for asthma diagnosis, funded jointly by the CCG and GP federation.

6 Jul 2018 Contactless Check-in using Apple Pay or wifi? Proposes replacing slow touchscreen check-ins with Apple Pay-style contactless or a wifi app that could also transfer blood pressure, PHQ9 scores and consent data to the practice.

6 Jul 2018 Why can't I use Contactless Check-in at my GP surgery using Apple Pay or Wi-Fi? LinkedIn Proposes Apple Pay-style contactless or wifi-based check-in for GP surgeries, cutting reception queues and enabling transfer of health data and consent from patients' phones.

8 Jun 2018 Cryptography From PGP to NHSmail's [secure] encryption, argues that proving patients are who they say they are — perhaps via authenticator apps — is the key to unlocking chatbots and online care.

8 Jun 2018 Cryptography and Proving our Identity From NHSmail's little-known [secure] encryption to practice chatbots, argues online care cannot flourish until patients can prove their identity — perhaps via an authenticator-style NHS app.

23 May 2018 Could a new feature in EMIS/Sunquest ICE save the NHS >£1.5 Million a year? Argues that letting Sunquest ICE batch-print test forms for a whole clinic list would free hours of admin time across practices, and asks why end users have so little influence on EPR features.

14 May 2018 Why I like Q Doctor - its a virtual locum on an hourly rate Praises Q Doctor's model of hourly-rate video locums booked by the practice, who write into the practice's own system — working with general practice, not against it.

14 May 2018 Q Doctor unlike some appear to be working with general practice and have some great… LinkedIn Praises video consultation service Q Doctor for working with general practice, offering hourly rates and recording into the local EPR.

10 May 2018 Could a new feature in EMIS/Sunquest ICE save the NHS >£1.5 Million a year? Argues that letting staff batch-print Sunquest ICE blood forms for a whole clinic list would save admin time across thousands of practices, and asks why users have so little sway over EPRs.

27 Apr 2018 More EMIS wishes Suggests improvements to the EMIS appointments module: default to the patient's usual doctor for continuity, show recent consultations, and better cross-organisation booking.

19 Apr 2018 Disaster Recovery - UPS devices and More Practical tips for keeping a GP practice running through power cuts: UPS devices on key PCs, charged laptops with EMIS, remote desktop access and printed patient summaries.

13 Apr 2018 One of our partners Lantum has just published a blog that we helped write about setting… LinkedIn Flags a co-written Lantum blog listing 14 questions to ask when setting up an extended-access GP hub.

12 Apr 2018 New models of working - sharing the work with online GPs Responding to RCGP warnings about online GP services, suggests practices could instead buy in online consultation capacity as overflow — cheaper than locums and integrated with the record.

11 Apr 2018 Ultramed's POAC service could save hospitals real money! An enthusiastic look at Ultramed's MyPreOp, which computerises pre-operative assessment with evidence-based algorithms, cutting nurse time, separate POAC appointments and referral-to-treatment delays.

11 Apr 2018 Have you thought about giving FirstDerm a go? How Neil's GP federation white-labelled the FirstDerm teledermatology app so GPs can upload photos of skin lesions and get consultant advice back within 24 hours.

10 Apr 2018 Could ApplePay (or Android equivalent) be used as a consent tool? Do we need a Hack day? Proposes smartphone challenge-response authentication, ApplePay-style, to replace tick-box consent for shared records like the Cheshire Care Record, and floats a hack day to build it.

9 Apr 2018 Is NHS England wasting £45Million? Questions whether NHS England's £45m online consultations programme is the best use of the money, suggesting new hardware, training, process consultancy or first-contact physio schemes instead.

3 Apr 2018 Save a GP appointment - test your own hearing! Recommends the Uhear self-test audiogram app and argues booking systems and receptionists should signpost free hearing and eye checks before patients ever reach a GP appointment.

23 Mar 2018 Which e-consult is best? Reports back from a federation demo day of online consultation systems — iPlato, Egton, Ask My GP, Doctorlink and others — where Doctorlink impressed most but funding questions loomed.

22 Mar 2018 Save a GP appointment – test your own hearing! Recommends the uHear self-test audiometry app and free high-street hearing checks, and asks why appointment triage systems don't signpost patients to such services.

12 Mar 2018 An innovative IT start-up based in London called AccuRx is adding a much needed feature to EMIS Web Reviews accuRx's free SMS add-on for EMIS Web, which lets GPs text patients directly with templates and record-keeping — a gap EMIS itself has never filled.

8 Mar 2018 Niche Health adds some nice apps to help with GDPR LinkedIn Notes that Niche Health, maker of iGPR, has adapted its auto-redaction software into two apps helping practices meet GDPR rules on records access and faster report turnaround.

1 Mar 2018 EMIS Web for Community Pharmacists LinkedIn Welcomes EMIS software giving community pharmacists GP record access, seeing potential for meaningful medication reviews, drug monitoring and chronic disease management.

14 Nov 2017 Howbeck Healthcare Limited has setup six GP Hubs - enabling patients to be seen out of… LinkedIn Reports Howbeck Healthcare has set up six GP hubs offering seven-day out-of-hours care, and offers help to others under the Extended Access scheme.

31 Oct 2017 Another View: of Private Doctor Apps Weighs up private GP apps: worries they become virtual walk-in centres without records, but suggests practices and federations could use the platforms as locally staffed overspill.

9 Sept 2017 Can the NHS learn from Amazon? LinkedIn Argues practices could cut the burden of annual chronic disease reviews by automating them online with home testing kits, Amazon-style.

7 Jun 2017 Another View: of the Cyberattack A first-hand account of the WannaCry ransomware attack hitting a GP surgery — flying blind by 5pm — and the case for backup kit, better patching and a more diverse NHS IT ecosystem.

22 May 2017 Another View: How to Develop future Clinical IT Leaders Argues the NHS lacks IT-literate clinicians to translate between clinical and technical worlds, and asks how CCIOs and informatics careers should be trained, qualified and nurtured.

27 Sept 2016 EPS and GP Frustrations with Ordering Drugs Online Details frustrations with online repeat prescribing and EPS: PRN over-ordering, too few inboxes, clunky screens, poor buddying for absent GPs and no visibility of chemist stock.

23 Aug 2016 Another View: of Appointments, Texts and Email On the gaps in online GP services: prescription requests need separating, booking needs triage, and secure patient messaging via MJog, iPlato or beyond awaits proper IG safeguards.

21 Aug 2016 Repeat Appointments Compares WebGP's triage-first booking front end with iPlato's slot-filling app, concluding that unfettered online access to GP appointments is a step backwards despite good SMS features.

26 Jun 2016 Why GP Federations need a CCIO From a CCIO summer school talk: why GP federations need clinical IT leadership, illustrated by projects on extended access, online booking, Apex dashboards and pooled typing.

21 Jun 2016 Quite a lot going on A round-up of local primary care IT: patient wi-fi, why video consultations aren't taking off, Horizon remote access, Slack trials, NHSmail woes and Technomed's reported ECG service.

16 Apr 2016 Another View: Nineteen Questions whether patients really want online access to GP records, raising confidentiality risks for abuse victims, and argues parcel-style tracking of tests and referrals matters more.

5 Jan 2016 Does your child have or have access to an iPad? LinkedIn Recommends the Osmo add-on for children's iPads, sharing an affiliate discount link after his daughter's success with it.

17 Nov 2015 Return to IT for GP Federations What GP federations need from IT suppliers: video conferencing between staff, home working, tools for supervising new roles, cross-practice phone answering and open, extensible systems.

8 Oct 2015 Click and Collect Proposes an ATM-style collection machine for prescriptions and paperwork outside the surgery, and asks why EPS can't handle urgent same-day scripts for commuters.

22 Sept 2015 Point of Care Testing Proposes mining ICE order-comms data to expose test-ordering variation and reinvesting savings in point-of-care testing — if CCG lab budgets could be shifted to practices to fund the machines.

1 Aug 2015 Handling Demand On stretching a shrinking GP workforce: Harry Longman's phone-first triage, online asynchronous consultations, waiting-room questionnaires and Sky-style dynamic appointment lengths.

22 Jul 2015 Appointment Slots Questions the rigid ten-minute GP appointment, exploring dynamic slot lengths, patient expectations around waiting, and measuring work done rather than patients seen.

8 Jun 2015 Hanging up the Phone Argues practices should move beyond the phone: federated call handling across surgeries, smarter online triage and booking, automated follow-ups and secure portal messaging to patients.

5 May 2015 IT for GP federations Outlines the draft IT strategy for a 28-practice GP federation: shared networks, video calls, the GPask Q&A site, and the Apex activity dashboard from Edenbridge.

2 Mar 2015 Another View: Mind the Gap On the 'implementation gap' in NHS IT: simple wins like EMIS EPR Viewer for a mental health consultant or remote access for GPs stall while university IT just works.

13 Feb 2015 Just do IT Argues the NHS should copy Sky and telecoms firms by giving district nurses tablets — for lone-worker safety, paperwork in the field, remote advice and data to match resource to need.

5 Feb 2015 How are English GPs paid? (2) LinkedIn Part two of a series on GP practice finances, walking through the expenses side: staff, rent and lease risks, indemnity subscriptions, stock, IT reimbursement and pension quirks.

7 Jan 2015 The A&E Crisis Challenges the media narrative that A&E pressure stems from poor GP access, citing local evidence, and announces a federation project to collect real data on primary care activity.

18 Nov 2014 Support Chat Compares GP practices to company support desks and, after a good experience with Nectar's live chat, wonders whether online chat between patients and their own GP would beat Skype or doctor-first.

19 Aug 2014 Savings Uses two ophthalmology anecdotes to show failure demand wasting NHS money, arguing hospital clinics should get specialty-specific windows into GP records to act themselves.

22 Jul 2014 Free Wi-Fi Argues every GP surgery and NHS building should offer wi-fi: free to patients via survey or advertising-funded landing pages, and smartcard-authenticated for staff.

27 May 2014 Saving £50m A back-of-envelope case for moving the NHS off ageing servers and Windows XP onto a shared cloud platform, reckoning practice and trust hosting savings near 50m pounds.

27 May 2014 Transforming Primary Care A response to the 'Transforming Primary Care' policy paper: case management of high-risk patients is right, but longer hours miss the point — GP efficiency and better IT matter more.

24 Mar 2014 Just informed EMIS Web is sticking for up to 20 secs everytime reception make an… LinkedIn Highlights EMIS Web freezing for up to 20 seconds per booking, costing the 700-appointments-a-day practice over three hours daily.

5 Feb 2014 Another View: Twenty Eight Asks whether GP system suppliers should be broken up, separating patient data from the software that records it, and pins hopes on GPSoC2's mandated APIs to open the market.

27 Nov 2013 Another View: Twenty Six Reads the new GP contract against a looming retirement crisis and argues future primary care IT needs smarter triage-led appointment systems, integrated video consults and business intelligence.

14 May 2013 Another View: Twenty Argues online records should become a personal health portal that nags patients about overdue smears and targets — and lets them check whether their GP is missing things too.

25 Feb 2013 Another View: Seventeen Applies easyJet-style self-service thinking to general practice: let patients reprint fit notes online, automate hypertension checks, and build a searchable directory of services.

8 Mar 2012 Computer systems have gone a little wry here at Ashfields today, especially the… LinkedIn Reports an IT outage at Ashfields Primary Care Centre affecting the appointment-booking software.

28 Jan 2012 If you feel that you may suffer from noise induced hearing loss, please make an… LinkedIn A public advisory encouraging anyone who suspects noise-induced hearing loss to book an appointment with their GP.

1 Jun 2011 From the consulting room: Making information free to be useful Microsoft NHS Resource Centre Sets out a vision for a tablet-based home-visit system with offline sync, and argues GP system suppliers should open their APIs to third-party add-ons as Apple and Facebook do.

4 May 2011 From the consulting room: Who’s checking the GP’s pulse? Microsoft NHS Resource Centre Argues GP commissioning needs IT that measures primary care itself: admissions early-warning systems, appointment access rates and per-clinician prescribing and referral data.

8 Mar 2011 From the consulting room: A design democracy Microsoft NHS Resource Centre After a column prompted EMIS to promise local Read codes, suggests suppliers adopt Dropbox-style Votebox idea boards so users can propose and vote on features, and trials Ideascale for GP wish lists.

5 Dec 2010 Getting your practice ready for EMIS Web GP magazine Practical advice on preparing practice staff for the switch to EMIS's new system, using scenario-based training rather than unstructured play.

26 Oct 2010 Saving money on practice printers GP magazine Money-saving ideas for practice printing, from stocktaking cartridges and sharing printers to centralising colour printing on one laser.

18 Oct 2010 From the consulting room on local shared records schemes Microsoft NHS Resource Centre Advice from a project giving A&E and out-of-hours a view of the GP record via EMIS Web: name it honestly, verify consent, and let patients see who has accessed their notes.

15 Sept 2010 Another View: One On EMIS Web's roll-out approval and the confusion around data sharing agreements and patient consent, urging EMIS to produce clear guidance before a mess ensues.

7 Sept 2010 Why your practice needs a business continuity plan GP magazine Argues every practice needs a plan for the unexpected, with suggested scenarios to cover and a staged approach to writing, distributing and reviewing one.

13 Jun 2010 How safe is the data on your home computer? GP magazine Compares home backup options for GPs who work at home, from USB sticks and mirrored external drives to RAID boxes, networked storage and early cloud services.

22 Apr 2010 My Vision for Appraisals A critique of the user-unfriendly NHS Appraisal Toolkit, proposing open APIs so learning sites, courses and clinical systems could feed evidence straight into a central appraisal record.

25 Nov 2009 Five Priorities for Primary Care IT Sets out five local priorities agreed with Cheshire ICT: reliable desktops, better telephony, electronic documents both ways between hospitals and GPs, and structured training.

22 Oct 2009 My Diagnosis on NHSmail A hands-on verdict on moving to NHSmail on Exchange 2007: easy setup on iPhone and Mac, a decent browser client, but niggles with Outlook at work, spam and encryption.

22 Oct 2009 How Swine Flu affected our IT How the 2009 swine flu outbreak forced doctors into shared downstairs rooms, exposing slow logins and making the case for remote desktops, fast user switching and macros.

9 Jun 2009 Our Website could do so much more. A 2009 call for practices to reclaim their websites: single log-in front doors offering tailored patient information, data capture, phone-queue status and hospital links.

12 May 2009 IT should make me more money Argues GP IT focuses on government targets rather than practice profitability, and identifies market gaps in stock control, staff performance reporting and appointment-linked business intelligence.

12 May 2009 All in a day’s work from the consulting room Microsoft NHS Resource Centre Column on slow NHS internet, plans for waiting-room wi-fi, locked-down desktops, NHSmail naming gripes and the launch of his iCalcRisk iPhone app.

17 Mar 2009 Dropbox: my favourite way to move files between computers GP magazine A review of Dropbox in its beta days, comparing it with MobileMe and Skydrive as a free way to sync files between work and home computers.

3 Feb 2009 Cutting the ties to the one GP system Argues primary care IT should shed its dependence on Windows desktops in favour of browser-based, hosted clinical systems that let GPs log on from any device.

18 Nov 2008 IT security starts with a good password GP magazine Explains what makes a strong password, how crackers defeat weak ones, and why locked terminals, user accounts and disk encryption matter at work and at home.

21 Sept 2008 Is your practice website good enough? GP magazine Argues that a practice website is becoming a marketing essential and poses challenging questions on signposting, openness about performance and findability.

17 Jun 2008 From the consulting room goes mobile (or not) Microsoft NHS Resource Centre Why GPs on home visits still have no usable access to patient records in 2008 — flaky 3G ToughBook trials, EMIS's inadequate portable options and laptops funded for management instead.

2 Jun 2008 Why can't we access patient records on home visits? GP magazine Asks why, despite billions spent on NHS IT, GPs still cannot reliably reach records when visiting their most vulnerable patients, and recounts a mixed trial of a 3G laptop.

4 Apr 2008 More on webmail from the consulting room Microsoft NHS Resource Centre Looks at NHSmail's move to Exchange 2007 and the improved Outlook Web Access client, wishes for NHS-wide Outlook add-ons, and wonders if the iPhone is the mobile device for GPs.

12 Feb 2008 From the consulting room: a few issues with Choose and Book Microsoft NHS Resource Centre A 2008 critique of Choose and Book as slow, buggy and badly designed, arguing GPs should refer electronically for a consultant opinion while admin staff handle appointment booking.

11 Jan 2008 Happy New Year: From the consulting room Microsoft NHS Resource Centre A 2008 wish list for primary care IT after a disappointing year for GPSoC: electronic test results, patient tracking, better training, intelligent prompts and single sign-on.

30 Oct 2007 Docman: document management that just works GP magazine A review of Docman v7, describing how one practice scans, routes and codes hospital letters electronically and uses the system as a practice intranet.

11 Sept 2007 Confessions of an Apple Mac convert GP magazine Neil switches from Windows to a 24-inch iMac and reports on six months of Mac ownership, from Office compatibility to logging on to the practice from home.

22 Mar 2006 Webcasting: lectures over the internet GP magazine An introduction to streamed online lectures for GP education, written ahead of the launch of GP magazine's own online learning service.

31 Jan 2006 The Palm TX: possibly the last Palm OS PDA GP magazine Reviews the Palm TX handheld's screen, memory, syncing and connectivity, and weighs it against Windows-based smartphone rivals for everyday GP use.

1 Nov 2005 Why I switched to a smartphone GP magazine Explains how combining phone and PDA in a Windows smartphone solved carrying two devices, with buying tips and a pointer to NHS-wide mobile contracts.

10 May 2005 Managing your practice IT GP magazine Advice on treating practice IT as part of the business rather than leaving it all to the PCT, covering asset registers, security levels, access and service level agreements.

28 Mar 2005 Trialling a tablet PC for remote access on the road GP magazine A PCT pilot pairs an HP tablet PC with VPN and a 3G data card so a GP can reach surgery systems from home, nursing homes and out on visits.

14 Jun 2004 Little Green Button: turning your PC into a panic button GP magazine Reviews Wiggly-Amps' networked panic-button software that lets any surgery computer summon help discreetly, with easy setup and responsive support.

9 May 2004 Switching from EMIS LV to FrontDesk for Windows GP magazine Reports on a practice's first months after swapping the EMIS LV appointment book for FrontDesk, covering training, LED call boards, home visits and reports.

3 Jun 2003 Beta testing the new EMIS Access module GP magazine Reports on a practice's experience beta testing EMIS Access, covering patient registration, security, online appointment booking and early patient feedback.

7 Aug 2002 Taking the laptop into the garden GP magazine Comparing wireless networking and a DECT cordless modem as ways to use a laptop anywhere in the house - and what WiFi might offer the practice.

23 Jun 2002 Accessing your practice network from home GP magazine A guide to dialling into the practice network from home in the pre-broadband era, covering RAS, security tokens, dial-back and NHSnet access.

17 Feb 2002 PaperPort Deluxe 8 as a personal information manager and simple intranet GP magazine A review of scanning and document-organising software that doubles as a cheap front end for a practice intranet on a shared network drive.