Patient Complaints Following EPR Implementation

Patients have expressed dissatisfaction regarding disruptions to outpatient bookings and waiting lists after the rollout of a new electronic patient record (EPR) system at Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust.

Details of the EPR System

• The trust launched its £85 million Oracle Cerner EPR in July 2025.
• This launch followed an eight-month delay to address issues related to system and organizational readiness.

Concerns from Local MP

After the system went live, Clive Betts, MP for Sheffield South East, reached out to Kirsten Major, the trust’s chief executive, highlighting serious concerns from constituents regarding ongoing failures in the hospital’s digital patient records system.

Specific Issues Reported

Reports indicate that:

1. The electronic system has experienced malfunctions, leading to missing or inaccessible waiting list data and patient records.
2. In one instance, staff informed a patient that the cardiology department was unaware of who was on their waiting list due to these system issues.

This situation has understandably caused anxiety among patients, who are uncertain about their status in the treatment queue.

Response from Trust’s Chief Executive

In response to these concerns, Major stated:

“A change of this magnitude and scale is bound to have some initial issues to resolve. We have had disruption to some of our outpatient appointment booking processes and correspondence.”

She assured that:

• Many affected clinics have already been corrected.
• A program is in place to address remaining issues swiftly to minimize impacts on waiting times.
• Clinical teams continue to prioritize urgent appointments, and all patients will be contacted when their appointments are ready.

Data Integrity Assurance

Major confirmed that the new system has not ‘gone down’ and that a backup of the old system’s information was saved prior to the transition. This ensures that no data has been lost, and previous paper records are still accessible.

Benefits of the New EPR System

Major emphasized that the new EPR is more clinically advanced than its predecessor, providing several benefits:

• Consolidation of patient information into a single system, enhancing visibility for all care providers.
• Decisions can now be made based on the most current information available.
• Potential for other trusts in South Yorkshire to adopt the same system for integrated care.