22 June 2007
The multibillion pound NHS computerisation project will not be destabilised by the departure of its chief architect, health minister Lord Hunt insisted this week.
Richard Granger, the NHS director general for IT — who is in charge of the £12.4bn Connecting for Health programme — said he would step down in October after five years in the job. Although he insisted he had planned to quit after five years, the news will come as a blow to the project.
The aim of replacing paper records has been delayed amid protests from patients and clinicians about privacy and financial problems at software supplier iSoft.
Some contractors have walked away from the scheme, with reports claiming they were frustrated by Granger's insistence that they would not be paid until they delivered systems that worked properly. But one IT consultant said the project would not have progressed as far as it has without Granger's 'no bull' approach.
Many trusts, particularly foundations, are keen to decentralise the project and many analysts believe the Department of Health will give in to their pressure.
PFjun2007
