by Nick Jacobs

In the July 3, 2008, Nature, a brief article titled “In rude health” explains the process that has evolved in the National Health Service of the United Kingdom that will result in “A treasure-trove of data in the UK National Health Service . . .that . . .is set to energize biomedical research.” Although the NHS takes a verbal beating from all of the criticism generated by its reported shortcomings, a recent survey showed 91% of 17 M hospital inpatients rated their care good, very good or excellent. More importantly, the NHS was rated above the systems of health-care in Australia, Canada, Germany, New Zealand, and the United States.

If that isn't enough good information, it turns out that the goal of the NHS has been, since its inception 60 years ago, to promote research. Sally Davies, NHS’s Director General of Research and Development has created the National Institute for Health Research which already has plans for virtual organizations to link universities, hospitals and industry, through which researchers will be able to conduct studies on patients more easily.

According to the article, the most important aspect of this plan is that it will open the myriad details of the patient data that has been collected over the past 60 years. This data will allow researchers to readily identify appropriate patients for clinical studies, an internationally unique resource that will swiftly move the concept of translational medicine into the current decade.

The article ended with this quote, “ . . . the NHS’s golden period may be yet to come.”