Nurses are losing faith in technology’s ability to improve patient care and enhance their working lives, according to research published this week.
Only 56 per cent of nurses today think IT developments such as the £6bn National Programme for NHS IT (NPfIT) will improve clinical care, compared with 70 per cent in 2004, says the Royal College of Nursing (RCN) survey of more than 4,000 professionals.
And although nearly half still believe technology will improve working conditions, the number is down 10 per cent from 2004.
The nursing community remains supportive of IT innovation, but is frustrated by a perceived lack of consultation both locally and at a national level, says RCN informatics adviser Sharon Levy.
‘Nurses can’t work any harder than they do, but they realise they can work smarter, and IT offers a possible solution,’ he said.
‘But it is not just to do with wires and boxes; staff need to be involved, informed and empowered to have ownership.’
The involvement of the nursing community is crucial to ensure that IT systems are relevant to the care of patients rather than just for the treatment of ill-health, says Levy.
‘Nurses follow the whole journey back to wellness, and are in a very good position to say what will work and what will not,’ he said. ‘So having nurses involved from the outset is crucial if you want a fit-for-purpose system.’
Training is also a central issue. In the past six months 69 per cent of respondents have received no IT training, while 95 per cent see training as central to the success of the national electronic patient record plan.
The situation can be improved, says Levy. The RCN is proposing closer collaboration with Connecting for Health (CfH), the agency responsible for NPfIT, and CfH says it is keen to improve engagement with its systems’ users.
‘We are learning from the survey and hope we can improve next year’s results by working with and engaging in the design and implementation of IT,’ said a CfH spokeswoman.
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