Select committee: Health and Social Care Committee
Conclusion 5
Eighth Report - Digital transformation in the NHS
Published 30 Jun 2023
Paragraph 45
Addressed to Department of Health and Social Care
Health and Social Care Committee Digital transformation in the NHS All items in this report Report on parliament.uk ↗ Inquiry on parliament.uk ↗
Conclusion (the committee's words)
A shortage of skilled digital professionals working in the NHS has been a barrier to digital transformation to date. Digital specialists can often command higher wages or better conditions in the private sector. This makes recruitment and retention to the NHS challenging, and leaves the health service reliant on third-party suppliers.
From: Health and Social Care Committee, Eighth Report - Digital transformation in the NHS (HC 223), paragraph 45, 30 June 2023
Government response
The government responded to the whole report on 6 September 2023 (deadline 30 August 2023).
Summary written by Accountability Index from the government's response. It is not the government's own words.The government states that it "largely agree[s] with the Committee's recommendations" and that its current package of work is "already delivering" on the areas highlighted.
- On the NHS App, it points to a roadmap published quarterly on the NHS England website and says a range of promotional activity is "underway over the coming months".
- On interoperability, final publication of the standards strategy is "expected in Winter 2023", and its priority for the coming year is a national federated network of Shared Care Records.
- On DDaT pay, it does not commit to the DDaT Pay Framework. It says it is "working to improve recruitment and retention", including a review of pay measures, and that "the solution requires a broader approach" via an upcoming National Digital Workforce Plan.
- On an accreditation scheme for third-party apps, it notes DTAC "in itself is not an accreditation scheme" and says a directory of products meeting DTAC standards "is planned for late 2023/24".