NHITB Shared Health Information Public Seminars

Updated on 12 September 2012

The National Health IT Board (NHITB) recently held a series of public and community seminars to discuss improvements to the way personal health information is shared electronically.

By the end of 2014 the Government's aim is for all New Zealanders and the health professionals caring for them to have electronic access to their health information.

The seminars were an opportunity to provide updates on progress and to gather feedback, and they follow on from the NHITB's 2010 Future of Health workshops.  

Public seminars have been held in New Plymouth, Invercargill, Auckland, and Nelson.  Community seminars for Asian and Pacific peoples, as well as older people and students, have also been held, and a forum for Maori was held in the Bay of Plenty in early September.  A number of DHB briefings have also been held to discuss the impact of the changes on health staff.

NHITB Director Graeme Osborne says the level of engagement with the issues has been pleasing.

"People have been keen to discuss what is planned and have raised some thought-provoking matters which we will need to consider," he says.

"We've really appreciated the opportunity to hear what people think about the benefits and challenges of sharing health information electronically."

A number of issues or themes have arisen across the seminars, including:

• Privacy - how will the new system connect with existing privacy laws, and how can people exercise their right to privacy?
• Ownership - who owns the information and who will make decisions about it?
• Access - who will be able to see personal health information that's collected?
• Security - how safely will information be stored?
• Trust that the information will be stored, accessed and used appropriately. What penalties will there be for breaches?
• How will the needs of people who do not have access to computers or who are not computer literate be met? 

More information about the seminars, including FAQs, is available here or go to www.health.govt.nz/sharedhealthinfo or by emailing NHITB Senior Advisor Robyn Nicholl at robyn_nicholl@moh.govt.nz.

For more details on these seminars:

• Sharing Your Health Information - the way of the future flyer (1.35MB, PDF)

Seminar presentations are available for download:

• Health Sector Briefing - Shared Health Information Seminars (2.5MB, PDF)
• Public Forum presentations - Shared Health information Seminars (2.5MB, PDF)