Junior doctors strike coincides with launch of new IT system

Dr Cash said the South Eastern Trust had “plenty to learn and plenty to teach us about going live” and that changes had been made to the initial system.

In March, BBC News NI reported that appointments in the South Eastern Trust had been delayed due to the new patient record system.

Since its launch in November 2023, it has conducted a survey to explore the staff experience of the system.

It shows the average reported confidence level of respondents in using encompass is averaging five out of 10, a slight improvement over three months.

However, frustrations still exist around more training and support required, system functionality and navigation issues also reporting governance and safety concerns.

Dr Cash said this was not a concern, adding that while it would be “difficult for our staff”, plans were there to support them.

Last week, BBC News reported that problems with NHS computer systems in England were linked to patient harm, but Dr Cash said he wanted to “reassure” the public that it was “a different system” and not related to the encompass programme which was being rolled out in Northern Ireland.

The encompass system has been built by a company called Epic which currently provides electronic records for more than 300m people within the UK and across the globe.