New technology investment to cut down NHS bureaucracy

The government has announced that it will be spending one billion pounds on efficiency-improving technology for the NHS over the next three years.

Using this funding, medical professionals will be able to access patients' complete medical details routinely across the country for the first time, bringing vital information on past treatment backgrounds to their fingertips.

By increasing access to electronic records and reducing reliance on paper notes, it is hoped that avoidable errors will be averted and more progress will be made on continuing efforts to reduce the amount of paperwork and bureaucracy within the NHS.

NHS Confederation chief executive Mike Farrar welcomed the announcement, saying: "If today's funding is invested in the right tools and technology … clinical staff can spend less of their valuable time filling in forms and more of it giving patients the care and treatment they need."

According to data from the NHS Confederation, more than one-third of NHS staff say they spend between one and three hours a day collecting and recording data, creating significant pressures on time and resources.