经济学人:病人数据 关爱和分享

 　　Patient data

　　病人数据

　　Caring and sharing

　　关爱和分享

　　A controversial NHS database will benefit patients—eventually

　　颇有争议的英国国民保健服务数据库将最终惠及病人

　　NESTLED among offers for tree trimmers, cleaners and slankets, the English may have noticed a leaflet with “important information” about their health records last month. More likely, they did not. Though the National Health Service says it sent one to every household, over 70% of the public do not remember getting it. Those who did pick it off the carpet learned of a plan to collect patient data from GPs. Slated¹ to begin in April, it has now been shelved for six months so that a more robust² campaign can be mounted to convince the public of its merits.

　　上个月，从事修剪树木、清洁工作或是居家的英国人可能会注意到有一张传单记录着他们健康情况的重要信息。更多的是，他们可能没有注意到这一现象。尽管英国国民保健服务机构称他们给每户家庭都送了一张健康信息单，超过70%的公众不记得收到过。那些在门口的垫子上捡到健康信息单的人们了解到，需要通过全科医生收集病人数据。尽管既定4月份开始启动，这一计划现在已经被搁置了6个月，因此，可能会利用一场更加激烈的活动让公众认识到该信息单的优越性。

　　The programme, called care.data, attracted little attention when it was set up as part of the Health and Social Care Act of 2012. Many patients now feel it has been thrust upon them with little consultation³. Critics have stoked fears that the database might be hacked⁴ or misused⁵ by businesses or other third parties, which can petition the government for access. Despite safeguards to keep identifiable data confidential⁶, GPs worry patients will withhold⁷ information from them. Many will likely opt⁸ out of the scheme, which almost two-thirds of the public opposes.

　　这一项目称为关爱数据，最初作为2012年健康和社会保健法案设立时并未引起人们的关注。许多病人现在认为这项法案没有咨询他们的意见就强加在了他们的身上。评论家们担心该数据库被黑客窃取或者被滥用于商业以及被第三方所利用，因为这些公司或第三方可以向政府申请访问权限。尽管保护措施确保可识别的数据非常隐秘，但是全科医生担心病人将从中撤走其个人信息。几乎有三分之二的公众反对该项目，很多人可能决定从中退出。

　　The NHS certainly has a public-relations problem, but its central case is strong. Data on patients in hospital are already collected by the health service—and have never been seriously breached⁹, say officials. These have helped it to allocate¹⁰ funds and keep accurate books. The information has also helped to save lives, says Tim Kelsey, the NHS director for patients and information. In Bristol, data showed an unusually high death rate during paediatric surgeries in the early 1990s, a problem since corrected. In Mid¹¹ Staffordshire the numbers signalled a catastrophic breakdown¹² in care between 2005 and 2009, leading to a government inquiry¹³, though not before hundreds of patients died.

　　国民保健服务有处理公众关系的问题，但是其核心案例非常强大。保健服务系统已经搜集了医院的病人数据—官员说并未遇到非常强烈的反对情况。这些案例帮助该服务系统筹集资金，并保证有关书籍的正确性。国民保健服务的病人与信息部主任蒂姆·凯尔西称，这一也有利于挽救病人的生命。在布里斯托尔收集的数据表明，20世纪90年代早期，儿科手术的死亡率非常高，自从改正后就出现了这个问题。斯塔福德郡中部的数据显示2005年至2009年，社会关爱遭受了灾难性的崩溃，成百上千的病人去世，从而引起政府政府关注进行调查。

　　Information gleaned¹⁴ from GPs would help the NHS administer the system better. But the greatest potential lies in linking the two datasets. People tend to think of health care as a one-off episode, says John Appleby of the King's Fund, a health-policy think-tank. But most care is consumed by people with chronic¹⁵ conditions, like diabetes¹⁶, who move between GPs' offices and hospital wards¹⁷. Without data from family doctors it is impossible to track patients and figure out which treatments produce the best long-term results.

　　通过全科医生收集的信息可帮助国民保健服务更好地管理这一系统。但是最大的潜力是连接两大数据组。卫生政策智囊团——国王基金——的约翰·阿普比人们常认为健康保健是一次性事件，但是大多数的医疗关怀都用在了患有慢性疾病的人身上（如糖尿病患者），他们往返于全科医生办公室和医院病房之间。没有来自家庭医生的数据资料，就没法跟踪病人并了解哪种治疗方式能够产生最佳的长期的治疗效果。

　　Few countries do this well, but Britain's NHS numbers, which are assigned to each patient, give it an advantage. Indeed, within its own (present) borders it has a model worth emulating¹⁸. Scotland gathers all data on diabetes patients into a central database and shares it around. One result has been a 40% drop in amputation¹⁹ rates. The Scots are now looking to keep diabetes patients out of hospital, where they cost over ￡300m ($500m) a year. Put another way, they want to know what is and is not working in GPs' offices.

　　很少有国家能够在这一领域取得成绩，但是英国的国民保健服务数据指定到每个病人，也是有其优势的。确实，在其范围之内，这一模式值得仿效。苏格兰收集了糖尿病患者的所有数据输入到中心数据库中，并和其他地区分享。其中之一的结果就是截肢率下降了40%。苏格兰人现在希望能让糖尿病患者离开医院，因此他们每年需要耗费3亿英镑（5亿美元）。但是另一方面，他们也想知道全科医生办公室的优点和缺点。

　　The more data collected, the more useful it is, but not everyone will be persuaded to hand their information to the NHS. Some patients will no doubt conclude that the potential benefits of care.data do not trump²⁰ their concerns. Either way they will get a healthy debate.

　　收集的信息越多越有用，但是不是能够说服所有人都同意将其信息交给国民保健服务机构。有些病人会毫不犹豫地断定关爱数据的潜在福利不会解决他们的顾虑。换句话来说，他们将进行一场关于健康的辩论。 译者：毛慧 校对：王红兵

1 slated   

用石板瓦盖( slate的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• Yuki is working up an in-home phonics program slated for Thursdays, and I'm drilling her on English conversation at dinnertime. Yuki每周四还有一次家庭语音课。我在晚餐时训练她的英语口语。
• Bromfield was slated to become U.S. Secretary of Agriculture. 布罗姆菲尔德被提名为美国农业部长。

2 robust   

adj.强壮的，强健的，粗野的，需要体力的，浓的

参考例句：

• She is too tall and robust.她个子太高，身体太壮。
• China wants to keep growth robust to reduce poverty and avoid job losses,AP commented.美联社评论道，中国希望保持经济强势增长，以减少贫困和失业状况。

3 consultation   

n.咨询；商量；商议；会议

参考例句：

• The company has promised wide consultation on its expansion plans.该公司允诺就其扩展计划广泛征求意见。
• The scheme was developed in close consultation with the local community.该计划是在同当地社区密切磋商中逐渐形成的。

4 hacked   

生气

参考例句：

• I hacked the dead branches off. 我把枯树枝砍掉了。
• I'm really hacked off. 我真是很恼火。

5 misused   

v.使用…不当( misuse的过去式和过去分词 )；把…派作不正当的用途；虐待；滥用

参考例句：

• He misused his dog shamefully. 他可耻地虐待自己的狗。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• He had grossly misused his power. 他严重滥用职权。 来自《简明英汉词典》

6 confidential   

adj.秘（机）密的，表示信任的，担任机密工作的

参考例句：

• He refused to allow his secretary to handle confidential letters.他不让秘书处理机密文件。
• We have a confidential exchange of views.我们推心置腹地交换意见。

7 withhold   

v.拒绝，不给；使停止，阻挡

参考例句：

• It was unscrupulous of their lawyer to withhold evidence.他们的律师隐瞒证据是不道德的。
• I couldn't withhold giving some loose to my indignation.我忍不住要发泄一点我的愤怒。

8 opt   

vi.选择，决定做某事

参考例句：

• They opt for more holiday instead of more pay.他们选择了延长假期而不是增加工资。
• Will individual schools be given the right to opt out of the local school authority?各个学校可能有权选择退出地方教育局吗？

9 breached   

攻破( breach的现在分词 )； 破坏，违反

参考例句：

• These commitments have already been breached. 这些承诺已遭背弃。
• Our tanks have breached the enemy defences. 我方坦克车突破了敌人的防线。

10 allocate   

vt.分配，分派；把…拨给；把…划归

参考例句：

• You must allocate the money carefully.你们必须谨慎地分配钱。
• They will allocate fund for housing.他们将拨出经费建房。

11 mid   

adj.中央的，中间的

参考例句：

• Our mid-term exam is pending.我们就要期中考试了。
• He switched over to teaching in mid-career.他在而立之年转入教学工作。

12 breakdown   

n.垮，衰竭；损坏，故障，倒塌

参考例句：

• She suffered a nervous breakdown.她患神经衰弱。
• The plane had a breakdown in the air,but it was fortunately removed by the ace pilot.飞机在空中发生了故障，但幸运的是被王牌驾驶员排除了。

13 inquiry   

n.打听，询问，调查，查问

参考例句：

• Many parents have been pressing for an inquiry into the problem.许多家长迫切要求调查这个问题。
• The field of inquiry has narrowed down to five persons.调查的范围已经缩小到只剩5个人了。

14 gleaned   

v.一点点地收集（资料、事实）( glean的过去式和过去分词 )；（收割后）拾穗

参考例句：

• These figures have been gleaned from a number of studies. 这些数据是通过多次研究收集得来的。
• A valuable lesson may be gleaned from it by those who have eyes to see. 明眼人可从中记取宝贵的教训。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

15 chronic   

adj.(疾病)长期未愈的，慢性的；极坏的

参考例句：

• Famine differs from chronic malnutrition.饥荒不同于慢性营养不良。
• Chronic poisoning may lead to death from inanition.慢性中毒也可能由虚弱导致死亡。

16 diabetes   

n.糖尿病

参考例句：

• In case of diabetes, physicians advise against the use of sugar.对于糖尿病患者，医生告诫他们不要吃糖。
• Diabetes is caused by a fault in the insulin production of the body.糖尿病是由体內胰岛素分泌失调引起的。

17 wards   

区( ward的名词复数 )； 病房； 受监护的未成年者； 被人照顾或控制的状态

参考例句：

• This hospital has 20 medical [surgical] wards. 这所医院有 20 个内科[外科]病房。
• It was a big constituency divided into three wards. 这是一个大选区，下设三个分区。

18 emulating   

v.与…竞争( emulate的现在分词 )；努力赶上；计算机程序等仿真；模仿

参考例句：

• The possibilities of producing something entirely new by emulating nature's very wide crosses are enticing. 用自然界的非常广泛的杂交方法创造出全新植物种的可能性是诱人的。 来自辞典例句
• The human emulating this archetypal patterning will be quite the accomplished businessperson. 这类原型模式者会是一个很成功的商人。 来自互联网

19 amputation   

n.截肢

参考例句：

• In ancient India,adultery was punished by amputation of the nose.在古代印度，通奸要受到剖鼻的处罚。
• He lived only hours after the amputation.截肢后，他只活了几个小时。

20 trump   

n.王牌，法宝；v.打出王牌，吹喇叭

参考例句：

• He was never able to trump up the courage to have a showdown.他始终鼓不起勇气摊牌。
• The coach saved his star player for a trump card.教练保留他的明星选手，作为他的王牌。