News / Patient care hindered by paperwork, says RCN

Nursing staff are spending about 2.5 million hours a week on non-essential paperwork and clerical tasks, according to the Royal College of Nursing (RCN).

An ICM survey for the union found that 86% of nurses believed the amount of non-essential paperwork, such as filing, photocopying and ordering supplies, had risen in the past two years, while 55% said it had increased dramatically. And 81% of the 6,387 nurses who responded said having to complete non-essential paperwork stopped them providing direct patient care.

RCN chief executive and general secretary Peter Carter (pictured) called for urgent action. ‘Some paperwork is essential and nurses will continue to do this, but patients want nurses by their bedside, not ticking boxes,’ he said.

Technology could add to the workload when not used properly. This was a particular problem for those working in the community, such as district nurses. ‘We need a smart, efficient and IT-savvy NHS, not a halfway house that actually impedes the work of staff and takes them away from patients,’ Dr Carter added.

The NHS Confederation is currently reviewing bureaucracy at the behest of health secretary Jeremy Hunt, with a view to cutting the burden by a third.

Confederation chief executive Mike Farrar said the RCN survey was consistent with its early findings. ‘The NHS has tolerated far more information being demanded from it than necessarily serves its purpose. This must change,’ he said.

The confederation will report its findings in September.