© 2004 BMJ Publishing Group Ltd & Institute for Healthcare Improvement
COMMENTARY
European Working Time Directive legislation
Developing and implementing organisational practice that delivers better, safer care
Correspondence to:
Correspondence to:
Dr W Reid
London Deanery, 20 Guilford Street, London WC1N 1DZ, UK; wreid@londondeanery.ac.uk
The impact of organisational changes such as the European Working Time Directive on doctors’ hours should be evaluated in terms of its effect on the quality and safety of patient care
Keywords: organisational change; doctors’ working hours; European Working Time Directive
| The first 150 words of the full text of this article appear below. |
Significant improvements in patient care usually require major organisational change. In reality, this inevitably means disruption and upheaval of working practices that have evolved over decades. The prospect of change creates uncertainty and an inertia that gets in the way of progress and improvement. Arguments for the status quo can often supersede the argument for change.
In the UK—and presumably throughout Europe too—hospitals are being thoroughly exercised by the urgent need to implement the European Working Time Directive (EWTD).1 This states that the working week must be limited to 48 hours. Because doctors have traditionally worked excessively long hours, the EWTD is being applied to them in stages. But, by 1 August 2004, doctors may only work 58 hours per week. The EWTD is set within the framework of Health and Safety at Work legislation. This makes sense. Long hours of work contribute to high
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