NHS patient record change will mean 20,000 fewer A&E visits, government says

The Department of Health and Social Care has claimed NHS reforms including a single patient registration system will mean 20,000 fewer visits to A&E a year after missing a target to reduce emergency waiting times.

The NHS Modernization Bill, which will go through its second reading in the House of Commons on Monday, will see fragmented health records across the country combined for the first time.

This will mean that all NHS providers, including hospitals and GPs, will need to share data so doctors and nurses in England can see a patient’s medical history, wherever they are being treated.

The Department for Health and Social Care (DHSC) said it would mean patients would no longer have to repeat their stories to different NHS staff, leading to more joined-up care with a “single point of truth”.

By seeing a patient’s full medication, allergies and prescribing history, clinicians will be able to get the full picture where and when needed, the government said.

The DHSC argued this would enable clinicians to provide safer treatment and save the NHS more than £20 million from reducing medication errors, adverse drug reactions and duplicate prescribing.

The department claimed that, alongside virtual care, single patient registration would reduce A&E care for frail patients by around 10,000 through better community care and a further 10,000 due to fewer misdiagnoses.

It is estimated that the reforms will result in 6,000 fewer people being admitted to hospital each year, thanks to avoiding A&E visits, better management of heart failure and improved mental health care coordination.

The ministry also estimated that having patient data on-site, reducing time spent searching for information and entering data, could save doctors approximately 500,000 hours per year.

Wes Streeting is set to launch his own intervention on reform just weeks after leaving office, where he will urge the government not to abandon its NHS reform agenda.

Speaking in the House of Commons on Monday, the former health secretary, who is vying to take over as prime minister, will refer to claims by Sir Keir and chancellor Rachel Reeves that the improvement in waiting lists is the result of investment in the NHS.

But Mr Streeting will warn: “Those who claim that recent improvements in NHS performance are simply the result of more money are making the same mistake that has held the NHS back for years.

“Investment is important, but we combine investment with reform: embracing technology, reducing bureaucracy, increasing productivity and changing the way care is delivered.

“So we’re seeing more patients being treated and better value being delivered to taxpayers. That’s the difference between managing decline and driving change.”

He also said the single-patient record was “one of the most significant reforms to the NHS in decades”, adding: “It is both unsafe and absurd that patients are still being asked to repeat their medical history every time they access a different NHS service.”

“It is vital that this reform puts the power in the hands of patients: It gives them greater ease and comfort, choice and control. We must take on manufacturer interests who think patient data belongs to them, not patients.”

This comes after the government achieved a key target to reduce the number of people waiting for NHS care; but figures published earlier this month showed the government had failed to meet targets to improve waiting times for A&E care by the end of 2025-26.

The data showed 76.9 per cent of patients in England were seen in A&Es within four hours; this rate was higher than 77.1 percent in March.

The government and NHS England set a target in March this year for 78 per cent of patients attending A&E to be admitted, discharged or transferred within four hours.

While the DHSC says the reforms will give patients greater control over their care by giving them security measures, audit trails and the ability to choose how their data is used, the British Medical Association (BMA), which represents doctors, is concerned the new law will open up the possibility of patient data being used inappropriately.

Deputy chairman of the BMA’s UK GP committee, Dr. David Wrigley said GPs have maintained confidential patients’ records since the NHS was founded in 1948.

He requested clarification that this duty would not be eliminated as it would raise “serious questions about who is protecting patients’ data”.

Dr Wrigley added in a statement: “It remains unclear what form the single patient record will take and whether it will build on existing technologies such as GP Connect, which opens up the GP record to NHS organizations that already provide direct care, or whether it will require wholesale duplication of existing health records, with control of this copy given to the government.”

But health secretary James Murray, who was appointed earlier this month following Mr Streeting’s resignation, said the measures would free up time for clinicians while making care safer.

“I know how much effort it takes to keep different parts of healthcare together and how frustrating it can be for some patients to repeat their medical history over and over again, which is why our single patient record is so important,” he said.

Dr Alec Price-Forbes, national chief clinical information officer for NHS England, said: “Patient information has been kept in silos for too long, leading to patients having to repeat their stories and creating workarounds, potential duplications or gaps in understanding for clinicians.

“A single patient record will give us an invaluable single point of truth for both clinician and patient and will mean better quality, safer, more joined-up and more personalized care for patients.”

Clinicians will have better access to records for specialties, including obstetrics and frailty care, as early as 2027.

Pregnant women currently need to review their entire medical history, relying on memory, at their first appointment with a midwife. This can lead to gaps in knowledge and can be distressing for those experiencing baby loss.

Consultant obstetrician at East Lancashire Hospitals NHS Trust, Dr. Michael Cocker said it would “set a new standard” for maternity care.

Dr Peters, consultant geriatrician at North Middlesex Hospital and clinical director of the London Frailty Network. Maurice Cohen said a single patient record would mean the NHS “wrapping ourselves around the patient rather than the patient wrapping themselves around us”.

The bill will also abolish NHS England and transfer many of its functions to the DHSC, or integrated care boards (ICBs), to reduce bureaucracy, reduce duplication and free up resources for frontline services.

Meanwhile, John Browett has been named chairman of the new Online NHS Trust, which will provide virtual specialist care to patients via the NHS app and video consultations.

Available in 2027, NHS Online will be a new, on-demand, online service that allows patients to digitally connect with clinicians across England.