Survey of senior frontline clinicians regarding the quality of information technology across the UK

Abstract

Background/Aims The quality of information technology (IT) services is key to effective healthcare delivery. However, the high aspirations of health ministers for IT services in hospitals may not be aligned with clinicians' perceptions. This study aimed to assess frontline clinicians' perceptions of the quality of IT services in their institutions. Methods The British Orthopaedics Directors Society online forum was used to invite a group of trauma and orthopaedic clinical leads from a range of hospitals to complete a short questionnaire regarding their perceptions of IT service quality in their practice. Results Negative perceptions of IT service quality were found to be common, with 45% of respondents rating their trusts' overall IT quality as poor or very poor. Of these, 13% deemed their trust's IT service quality to be so poor as to put patients at increased risk. Wide disparities were also reported between respondents' ratings of IT infrastructure quality and institutional responsiveness to concerns. Conclusions This small initial evaluation highlights concerning variations in clinicians' perceptions of IT service quality across different trusts. It also suggests the need for further, more detailed assessment and monitoring of IT quality improvement, for which the same questionnaire method may be useful.