Medway GP explains how the global IT shortage is affecting his practice

Transcript

00:00We don't have paper records anymore and general practice is overwhelmingly done on IT

00:05and unfortunately the system we use in Kent, which is called EMIS, is down.

00:09It's down across the whole of the country.

00:11It means we can't access patients' records, we can't prescribe for them,

00:15we can't give them test results and so on.

00:17Whilst we do have contingency plans to maintain safety,

00:21what we're unable to do is the sort of routine things

00:23most people expect from their general practitioner.

00:26Some practices may need to cancel routine appointments.

00:29If they're coming to get test results or having special examinations,

00:32for example, for babies or for things like asthma,

00:36then that might not happen again because we can't access the records

00:39and repeat prescriptions will be delayed because we can't send them electronically.

00:44We can do a small number by handwriting them,

00:46but it's not practical to do that for everybody.