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Nurses are spending too much time filling in paperwork instead of caring for patients, according to a survey.

The Royal College of Nursing, a nurses' union, released the results of the survey on April 28 at its annual congress.

It has now called for investment in administrative support for all nurses to free up more time for patient care.

The survey found that from the 1,700 nursing staff surveyed, 1,496 believed non-essential paperwork such as filing, photocopying and ordering supplies had increased over the past five years.

It also showed 476 nurses had no access to clerical support at all and 1,445 believed that help with paperwork would mean they could spend more time caring for patients.

And the college says those nurses working in the community and in outpatient departments are the hardest hit.

College chief executive and general secretary Dr Peter Carter said: "Nurses are clearly feeling the burden of non-essential paperwork.

"The danger is that this is undermining their ability to care for patients and support relatives.

"Of course there will always be a certain amount of paperwork that needs to be done, but wherever possible, these non-essential tasks should be carried out by clerical staff.

"To do this we need to see an urgent increase in the number of ward clerks and other clerical support roles."

A spokesman for Queen Elizabeth Hospital said paperwork was necessary, particularly where care for patients had become more complex.

He said: "The course of a person's journey through a hospital has to be recorded and that requires doctors and nurses to keep a strict record."

11:15am Wednesday 30th April 2008

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