Walsall Hospital's £100k bill for temporary IT staff
Twenty-five temporary workers are being taken on at a hospital trust at a cost of £100,000 to help introduce a computer system that is actually slowing staff down, it was revealed today.
The new Lorenzo system at Walsall Manor Hospital aims to improve the way that patient information is managed.
But frustrated workers say they are struggling to fit all their work into their day – and fears have been raised it could lead to mistakes in booking appointments and clinics.
The moves come despite hospital bosses trying to cut the number of temporary workers being taken on as patient numbers continue to rise.
So bosses have agreed to take on 25 staff on three-month contracts – which could be extended to six months – to help bring the new system in.
They have not revealed how much it will cost to employ the new staff but insist it is vital to help tackle the teething problems.
When the new system was announced chiefs said around 2,000 trust workers have been given extensive training on the new system, which they said had been tailored to 'match their job needs'.
The introduction of the Lorenzo system follows the merger of the hospital and primary care services into a single healthcare trust two years ago.
It will eventually mean the removal of the need for staff to physically retrieve paper files from storage rooms.
However a report to the Walsall Healthcare NHS Trust reveals a 'sense of frustration amongst staff using the system as previously embedded operational practices need to change' .
The document by Steve Darkes, Director of Informatics, adds: "The risk being that confidence in Lorenzo is undermined. In particular it is acknowledged that some areas are struggling to complete a 'day's work in a day'."
So Mr Darkes says a decision has been taken to recruit new workers, who started last week.
He said: "In order to stabilise the implementation, bolster the areas that are struggling and ensure that the data is correct a decision has been taken to recruitment 25 staff on short term contracts. This cohort of staff will support both the completion and data entry of back logged data items as well as supporting front line services in preventing a back log occurring."
Trust spokeswoman Aimee Dyer said: "We have recruited 25 people in total who are now on short term contracts of three months with an option to extend to six months. We have provisioned £100,000 in the financial plan to pay for these additional people."
It comes after it was revealed the hospital spent more than £1.8 million on temporary workers in one month alone.
