iPhone app allows NHS patients to rate services

A former health minister has launched an iPhone application so patients can keep track of their NHS appointments and rate the services they use.

Lord Darzi, who quit as a minister in July 2009, hopes people will use the app in the same way that they use online hotel and restaurant review sites. The Wellnote app lets patients enter their medical history, including whether they have allergies, specific problems and their test results.

The idea is that this record can be emailed or shown to a doctor if an emergency arises. The application contains a list of more than 2,000 medications to help people enter the specific drugs they take, and alerts can be created to tell patients when to take tablets and when they have an NHS appointment.

Users can anonymously rate healthcare services in England in the same way they rate music on iTunes. The scores will appear alongside official ratings from the Care Quality Commission so patients can compare scores.