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A UK survey of 203 NHS trusts revealed that 85% do not actively track the digital experience of frontline staff. This leaves many organizations without a clear understanding of technology performance or how IT problems disrupt patient care.

Outages and delays go unmeasured

The results came from two Freedom of Information requests submitted between January and March 2026. Nearly half of the trusts could not confirm the total duration of clinically significant IT outages. Another 28% were unable to report how many outages occurred during the period.

Those that did provide figures logged over 1.1 million device-related incidents in one year—an average of more than 9,000 per trust. They also recorded 360,000 IT-related incidents and over 13,000 hours of downtime. Resolution times often exceeded two days.

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Even with ongoing digitisation, 44% of trusts could not report how many pages were scanned into electronic patient records. Two-thirds did not track how long staff took to access systems, and 59% had no data on workstation availability for employees.

While trusts collect large amounts of operational and technology data, many cannot consistently identify where delays happen or how IT issues impact workflows. This lack of visibility makes it difficult to assess whether digital investments are improving efficiency.

The survey did not measure the impact of outages on patient outcomes. However, the high number of incidents—thousands annually per trust—indicates a system under pressure. When systems fail, clinicians often use workarounds like paper records or personal devices, which can create new risks.

If most trusts cannot track basic metrics like system access times or workstation availability, justifying further digital expansion becomes challenging. The data suggests the NHS may be expanding its digital infrastructure without adequate oversight.

A wider pattern of oversight

The findings match other recent reports on NHS digital progress. Many trusts measure technical uptime rather than clinical impact. A system that functions but runs slowly can still disrupt care. The survey’s authors argue the NHS needs standard metrics linking IT performance to patient outcomes.

The data depicts a health service struggling to match its digital ambitions. Without better visibility into technology performance, investments may continue to fall short of expectations.

Urgent care providers have also highlighted similar challenges during high-demand seasons, emphasizing the need for reliable systems to maintain service quality.