BHRUT would like to update you on an issue they discovered last month with EPRO at the Trust. It is the digital dictation system they use to draft, type and approve clinical letters that they issue after they've seen one of your patients. Once approved, these letters are either sent to your electronic mailboxes or direct to the patient.
BHRUT found 43,761 letters that had been created, but not sent, between January 2019 and November 2022 - most of them related to outpatient attendances and other services such as fracture clinic. In order to investigate this thoroughly, a serious incident was declared and a task and finish group has been meeting weekly to oversee progress in their investigation.
They have been undertaking an administrative review to establish if the letters are still relevant and need to be sent. It was decided that all letters that were marked urgent or related to children and young people or to those with learning disabilities would be reviewed automatically by a clinician to ensure no further clinical action was required. Any letters reviewed by their administrative staff that require clinical action will also be reviewed by a clinician.
As a result of this intensive work, they have established that less than one in ten of the letters (3,691) need to be assessed to see if, potentially, there has been clinical harm. Most of the letters (40,070) did not include any request for a clinical review or required further action by another health professional.
They intend to complete this process in the coming weeks and we will share any learnings once this is finished. BHRUT are grateful to Atul, Anil and Jagan, our Associate Medical Directors for Primary Care, for their support with this work.
Please follow this link to download this letter.