Patients having to chase NHS test results and receiving appointment reminders after the date has passed is not acceptable
The fact that patients are being forced to chase NHS test results and receiving appointment reminders after the date has passed is a damning indictment of the administrative regime in the health service.
The one area where the NHS cannot plead poverty is administrative functions. The healthcare budget has continued to balloon but frontline staff find themselves under increasing pressure.
Given all the resources that have been poured into the administration of the NHS, the least that is expected is clear communication.
Yet a study, from the King’s Fund, Healthwatch and National Voices, found two-thirds of people, 66 per cent, have experienced at least one NHS admin problem in the past year.
Across industries there is disgruntlement at the idea of Artificial Intelligence (AI) potentially taking jobs. But when it comes to the NHS, AI can’t come quick enough.
The Health Secretary has already signalled a desire to drag the NHS into the 21st century. This transformation cannot come quick enough. The computing power is now there and NHS bosses must get on with it. That doesn't mean replacing NHS admin staff with just technology but rather giving them the support that they need to deliver for patients.
The NHS is being found wanting when it comes to delivering for patients. That much is illustrated by Wes Streeting’s criticism saying the organisation has a “problem with basic, everyday sexism” as he launched a renewed Women’s Health Strategy.
For too long the narrative has been about protecting the NHS, now it must be about how it better protects patients.