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PUBLISHER’S LETTER www.siliconchip.com.au Publisher & Editor-in-Chief Leo Simpson, B.Bus., FAICD Production Manager Greg Swain, B.Sc.(Hons.) Technical Staff John Clarke, B.E.(Elec.) Peter Smith Ross Tester Rick Walters Reader Services Ann Jenkinson Advertising Enquiries Rick Winkler Phone (02) 9979 5644 Fax (02) 9979 6503 Mobile: 0414 34 6669 Regular Contributors Brendan Akhurst Louis Challis Rodney Champness Garry Cratt, VK2YBX Julian Edgar, Dip.T.(Sec.), B.Ed Mike Sheriff, B.Sc, VK2YFK Philip Watson, MIREE, VK2ZPW Bob Young SILICON CHIP is published 12 times a year by Silicon Chip Publications Pty Ltd. ACN 003 205 490. ABN 49 003 205 490 All material copyright ©. No part of this publication may be reproduced without the written consent of the publisher. Printing: Hannanprint, Dubbo, NSW. Distribution: Network Distribution Company. Subscription rates: $69.50 per year in Australia. For overseas rates, see the subscription page in this issue. Editorial & advertising offices: Unit 8, 101 Darley St, Mona Vale, NSW 2103. Postal address: PO Box 139, Collaroy Beach, NSW 2097. Phone (02) 9979 5644. Fax (02) 9979 6503. E-mail: silchip<at>siliconchip.com.au ISSN 1030-2662 * Recommended and maximum price only. 2  Silicon Chip The health record card – what a smart idea Recently, there has been quite a lot of discussion about the adoption of electronic storage and transfer of medical infor­mation for all Australians. The idea has been greeted cautiously by the medical profession but there are reser­vations. What we are talking about is a complete cradle-tothe-grave medical record which will be accessible each time you visit your doctor or require any sort of health care. Yes, there are all sorts of possible drawbacks – loss of privacy, the possibility of information being passed to third parties, insurance companies, Government social security link-ups and so on. But think about the positives. Privacy is just about gone in our society, anyway. Just say you had a smart card with all your medical history on it. I’m not just thinking about the sort of stuff recorded on a card file at your doctor’s surgery. It would also contain details of every operation, every visit to your local hospital’s outpatients’ department, every sporting injury, X-rays, all your dental records, optical prescriptions and even any herbal treat­ments you might have had. I’ll bet that most people have little knowledge of their childhood ailments and treatments, the number of fractures and sprains, torn ligaments and dislocations they might have suf­fered. In my own case, I know that I have had a couple of minor operations 15 or more years ago but I cannot remember all the details, precisely when they occurred, the surgeons who performed them and so on. And nor can I remember the times and details of when I might have visited hospital casualty departments to have stitches when I walked through a glass door at night, when I dislocated my shoulder and so on. As with most people, I have had several local doctors over the years and nowadays, most people just tend to visit the local medical centre for treatment. So most people would have disparate medical records spread over various doctors, medical centres, hospitals, dentists, in different cities and states and so on. It would be great to have all this information together and on tap whenever you visit the doctor. He or she would zip the card into the computer, run through the records, make any diagno­sis and prescribe treatment. All this would then be recorded in three places: on your own health card, at the doctor’s surgery and in a central database. Think about the ramifications of this. First, any diagnosis and treatment should be more correct. Multiple and conflicting drug treatments for different ailments should be avoided. If ever you were wheeled unconscious into a hospital casualty department, they could immediately call up your complete medical records and they would know which drugs to avoid, which drugs to apply (for ongoing treatment of existing conditions) and so on. Your chances of survival in such a situation would be much better. But the system could be enhanced further. It could incorpo­rate family medical history as well, so that it would highlight any long term diseases (cancer, blood pressure, etc, etc) that you might be prone to. It could even have your DNA! You might even be able to plug the card into your own com­puter which then would periodically prompt you to have a checkup, take your medicine, visit the dentist and so on. Ultimately, doctors might employ software to scan your card and current symptoms and then suggest possible diagnosis and treatment – as a backup to the doctor, of course. Ultimately, such a system would be a great advance in the health treatment of the nation. Sure there are possible drawbacks but I think the positives would outweigh the negatives. It could all be developed in Australia and then sold to the rest of the world. Now that would be something! Leo Simpson