FRONTLINE staff at NHS 24 were not trained well enough to use a multi-million pound IT system before it was launched, according to a new report.
The patient helpline has admitted nurses and call handlers did not have enough experience using the technology which had to be withdrawn within 10 days to ensure patient safety.
The bungle is the latest in a series which have seen the cost of the replacement telecommunications system rise by around £50 million and caused repeated delays.
In a new report, NHS 24 has admitted it was "high risk" to launch the technology at the start of winter when the number of patients calling for medical advice begins to rise.
But the board decided to go ahead, believing the "risk could be managed" and would avoid the "significant double running costs" incurred through using the old system for assessing and recording symptoms at the same time as funding the repeatedly postponed new technology.
In the wake of the launch on November 3 the report said the time it took staff to deal with patients almost doubled.
Referring to the situation six days into the new system, the report said: "Service access levels had fallen dramatically, staff had struggled to use the system effectively and partner (health) boards had expressed concerns."
Figures for November suggest the number of patients who hung up before their call was answered rocketed from 1,000 to 8,000. The health board has confirmed this was because people were waiting longer to speak to someone when the new IT was live.
The report concludes the new system was not "fully ready for use and that the NHS 24 operational teams were not fully ready to use the system". Some staff had difficulty interpreting the guidance notes on using the software and the report points to "weaknesses in the training and familiarisation approach resulting in a lack of operational staff's experience of the system, which significantly reduced staff confidence and may have contributed to increased call handling time".
A statement from staff raising concerns was among the factors taken into account when the board decided to drop the new IT system after 10 days and revert to the old regime.
Staff representatives have paid tribute to nurses and call handlers for their hard work protecting patient care during that difficult time.
NHS 24 is now planning to relaunch the technology in June and is planning "more comprehensive" staff training. However, the report - which was presented to the health board last week - said workforce planning should assume productivity will halve for the first three months.
The new system, called the Future Programme, was supposed to ensure patient callers had a smoother experience.
Theresa Fyffe, director of the Royal College of Nursing Scotland, said it was clear at the end of last year that the new system was "not fit for purpose" and the decision to halt its introduction was correct.
She added: “Unfortunately, however, it’s the staff working on the frontline at NHS 24 who have had to deal with the fallout and continue to provide crucial health advice and services to the public under less than ideal circumstances. Staff had neither enough time nor the necessary training on the new system for it to be implemented successfully, as is now fully acknowledged."
In a statement, NHS 24 said: "While we were extremely disappointed that the launch was not successful, there were significant learnings from that period, during which more than 30,000 calls were delivered on the system. This demonstrated the clear potential of the new system at the same time as highlighting the need for further refinement work. It also showed much more preparation was needed to enable staff to confidently operate the new technology and detailed plans are being developed to train staff."
The board added the new system would provide streamlined support for patients. It said: "We continue to work with our suppliers to ensure the new system will be robustly tested and fully ready for operational use."
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