NHS IT failings lead to harm and deaths.

IT failures have been linked to the deaths of three patients and more than 100 instances of serious harm at NHS hospital trusts in England, BBC News has found.

A Freedom of Information (FOI) request also found 200,000 medical letters had gone unsent due to widespread problems with NHS computer systems.

Nearly half of hospital trusts with electronic patient systems reported issues that could affect patients.

NHS England says it has invested £900m during the past two years to help introduce new and improved systems.

Introducing computerised records to make NHS in England paperless is a government priority. So all patient’s medical records are easily accessible to GPs, hospitals and care homes but there have been numerous false starts and the latest deadline, set by the Department of Health and Social Care, is now 2026.

Some hospital trusts have spent hundreds of millions of pounds on new electronic patient record (EPR) systems, but BBC News has discovered many are experiencing major problems with them.

Separate to the BBC’s FOI investigation, coroners have highlighted the role that hospital IT systems have played in the deaths of some patients.

Darnell Smith, 22, had sickle cell disease, cerebral palsy and was non-verbal. He was admitted to the Royal Hallamshire Hospital, Sheffield, with a cough and cold-like symptoms and a reduced appetite, in November 2022.

He should have had his vital signs, heart rate, blood pressure and temperature, checked by staff every hour for a minimum of six hours, but there were no checks for more than 12.

A coroner later concluded that staff were not aware of Darnell’s particular needs because his personal care plan was not easily visible in the hospital's computerised records.

His father told BBC News: “For me, the IT system should be set up in a way where you have to see it so it doesn't allow you to move any further until you've read what you're supposed to read.”

Several hours after his care plan came to light, Darnell was admitted to critical care and was put on a ventilator the next morning. He died from pneumonia two weeks later.

Following an inquest, the coroner warned of a “real risk of further deaths” if doctors couldn’t access important information about patients’ care needs.

Sheffield Teaching Hospitals Trust apologised for the care Darnell received and said changes had been made to limit this happening again and a new IT system is being introduced this year.

In another IT related case, Emily Harkleroad collapsed in December 2022 and was taken to A&E at University Hospital of North Durham, where a blood clot on her lung, known as a pulmonary embolism, was diagnosed.

There were errors and delays in giving Emily the blood-thinning treatment she urgently needed. She died the following morning.

A coroner's report later found that Ms Harkleroad’s death could have been prevented. A new computer system, installed months earlier, did not clearly identify which patients were the most critically ill and needed to be prioritised by senior doctors, an inquest heard.

Clinicians had previously raised concerns about the system and the coroner urged the hospital trust and software supplier Cerner, now owned by Oracle, to take action to prevent future deaths.

Oracle told BBC News: "While there is no suggestion that software was at fault in this case, we continue to work closely with our NHS partners to implement successful programmes that help them deliver the safest and most effective care for the 16 million citizens our systems support in the UK.”

County Durham and Darlington NHS Foundation Trust told BBC News it was taking the coroner’s report extremely seriously.

Through its Freedom of Information request, the BBC also learned that more than 2,000 incidents of potential patient harm at the Durham trust had been connected to the new IT system, and three other serious incidents.

The Royal College of Emergency Medicine said the coroners' findings for Emily's and Darnell's deaths were "shocking and deeply worrying".

President Dr Adrian Boyle said: “It’s essential that our members and their colleagues have access to reliable technology and effective systems that they can trust, and that don’t risk patient safety.”

He added that systems should be designed with clinicians' input and there should be the ability to make urgent adaptations if problems are identified.

NHS England said electronic patient record systems had been shown to improve safety and care for patients, by helping clinicians detect those at risk from conditions such as sepsis.

National medical director for transformation at NHS England, Professor Erika Denton, said: “The NHS has invested nearly £900m during the past two years to help local organisations introduce new and improved systems, so they are no longer relying on paper records or patchwork systems which carry far greater risks to safety, care delays, and patient privacy.

“However, like any system, it’s essential that they are introduced and operated to high standards, and NHS England is working closely with trusts to review any concerns raised and provide additional support and guidance on the safe use of their systems where required.”

In another incident, the BBC reported that more than 24,000 letters from Newcastle hospitals had not been sent from their EPR system and more than 400,000 letters had got lost in computer systems at hospitals in Nottingham.

The failure by hospitals to send out letters to GPs and patients could mean anything from an appointment to a cancer diagnosis or change of medication being missed.

The BBC’s Freedom of Information request sent to all acute hospital trusts in England, of which 116 responded, established the following:

• 89 trusts confirmed they monitored and logged instances when patients could be harmed as a result of problems with their Electronic Patient Record (EPR) systems
• almost half recorded instances of potential patient harm linked to their systems
• nearly 60 trusts reported IT problems that could affect patient care
• more than 200,000 letters were not sent across 21 trusts

There were 126 instances of serious harm linked to IT issues, across 31 trusts

The Royal College of GPs said it was shocked and surprised by the findings. Prof Kamila Hawthorne, chairwoman of the college, said: “Now that we know there is a problem, it is crazy not to do something quickly in order to save lives and keep people safe.”