Speaking at the Mobile and Wireless Healthcare conference in Birmingham yesterday, Morrison-Gardiner explained to his audience of NHS professionals that community-based services can reap many benefits from the use of smartphones.

Services such as auditable mileage claims by staff – using data from on-phone global positioning system technology – and the ability to manage workflows on the move, without having to return to the office or power up a laptop, can all improve the level of patient service, he explained.

And, with the right IT security systems in place, it is now even possible to securely access patient medical records whilst on the move, he said.

But the smartphone, he told his audience, can also do a lot more, as with onboard authentication and VPN access, it becomes possible to streamline the workflow process.

"We have NHS staff who can securely book their holidays, as well as log their hours and generate overtime reports, all with the highest level of security and using a fully auditable technology" he said.

With the Information Commissioner's Office planning to hit organisations with fines of up to 500 000 pounds from April onwards, he explained, NHS staff must now be extremely careful when handling their own (staff) records, as well as those of the patient.

"Security on the move is all about keeping information securely protected, even when that data is on the move across the cellular network. With the new ICO regulations coming in, it is crucially important for the mobile systems that staff use in the field are secure enough to meet data protection requirements", he said.

"Last year, the ICO intervened in the operations of 25 health trusts in the UK over data leakage problems. Fines were imposed on a number of healthcare organisations for failing to secure their data", he added.

The problem facing IT managers, he went on to say, is that most laptops were not designed to communicate securely over low-bandwidth (2G) transmission systems.

Using a smartphone gets around this limitation, even to the point that securely accessing electronic health records on a smartphone becomes truly viable, he added.