Mr. Derek Tierney:

Let me answer that. There are a few questions rolled up in this so I will try to unpick it if I can. The purpose of the Bill is to ensure a minimum level of health data is captured for the patient's benefit so that when he or she needs intervention, the healthcare provider has a minimum level of information from which to work. At the moment, if I arrive at an accident and emergency department in which I have never been treated before, those who are providing me with first intervention do not know who I am, what my need is or what medication I am on. They do not even know what my history is. Think about the time they spend just to get a basic diagnosis of what is being presented in front of them. If we think about digitising health records, the primary benefits are increasing safety and quality of care to deliver better outcome. On the time-saving piece, I am sure Deputy Daly would agree healthcare professionals would rather spend more time providing face-to-face care than documenting the care they are giving. It is about being equipped with a capability to free up precious, valuable time in the context of giving care rather than administrating paperwork on that level of care. As the Minister says, one of the secondary benefits is the time saved and realised in the overall system. Time costs money and, therefore, there is a productivity saving and a cash release gain, ultimately. Any way we have looked at an enterprise EHR, the benefit-to-cost ratio makes absolute sense here. There is no argument about it.