UK’s National Health Service: In 2005, the UK’s National Health Service (NHS) started deployment of an electronic health record systems with a goal to have all patients with a centralised electronic health record by 2010. While several hospitals acquired electronic patient records systems as part of this process, there was no national healthcare information exchange.
The program was ultimately dismantled in 2011, after a cost to the UK taxpayer was more than £12 billion, and is considered one of the most expensive healthcare IT failures. According to The Independent, the project had been plagued by changing specifications, technical challenges and clashes with suppliers, which left it years behind schedule and way over cost.
US and Australia: In the US and Australia, where digital healthcare has enjoyed a relatively better outing, the creation of a patient and physician-centric e-healthcare ecosystem remains a work in progress.
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