NHS loses 13.5 million hours of doctors? time a year owing to IT problems, says BMA

The BMA has calculated that 13.5 million hours of doctors??? hours are lost to the NHS every year???the equivalent of 8000 full time equivalent doctors???owing to IT systems that have failed, are slow, or are not up to date. Chaand Nagpaul, BMA???s UK council chair, made the startling revelation at the association???s Annual Representative Meeting 2022 in response to a motion calling for major investment in IT. Gerard McHale of the BMA junior doctors committee described his ???shock and bewilderment??? at the outdated systems he found when he began working as a junior doctor. ???Not only do I have to write on paper files, not only do I have to walk often to the end of a huge estate with a paper x ray form to try and get a radiology department to do a simple x ray examination, but I didn???t understand the notes of these sick patients written in doctor???s scrawl overnight,??? he told the conference. The motion, which was passed, also recognised the success of remote working during the pandemic and called on the BMA to negotiate better provision of quiet places with computers near work to support remote meetings and education. McHale explained the difficulties that junior doctors experienced trying to find somewhere for learning and self-development in hospitals. ???You are told that you need to stay in the hospital to do it, but where? Find a space in the mess, find a corridor, or listen on your smartphone. How are you going to discuss a confidential case? How are you going to debrief on a difficult clinical scenario that you had to deal with today? This is not acceptable. We have an IT system that???s not fit for purpose, we need to bring it into the 21st century. And this motion helps do that.???

Automated summary

The British Medical Association (BMA) has revealed that a staggering 13.5 million hours of doctors' working time is lost to the National Health Service (NHS) each year due to failed, slow, or outdated IT systems. The BMA UK council chair, Chaand Nagpaul, shared this shocking statistic at the association's Annual Representative Meeting 2022 in response to a motion calling for significant investment in IT. Junior doctors committee member Gerard McHale expressed his shock and confusion at the outdated systems he encountered when he started working. The motion, which was passed, also recognized the success of remote working during the pandemic and called for better provision of quiet spaces with computers near work to support remote meetings and education.