D Kenny1. 1. Westgate Surgery, Dursley, Gloucestershire.
Abstract
OBJECTIVES: To record and analyse the bureaucratic unsolicited mountainous paper heap (BUMPH) received by general practitioners; to make some suggestions for coping with the ensuing workload. DESIGN: Daily record of all BUMPH landing on the desk of a general practitioner in one year. SETTING: Mixed practice with one full time and two job sharing principals. RESULTS: 5100 pages of BUMPH arrived during the year. The most prolific source of origin was health authorities (1549 pages). Fridays, Mondays, and the day after a holiday were the days BUMPH was most frequently seen. CONCLUSIONS: BUMPH is a major source of workload. One way of avoiding it is not to work on the day after a day off.
OBJECTIVES: To record and analyse the bureaucratic unsolicited mountainous paper heap (BUMPH) received by general practitioners; to make some suggestions for coping with the ensuing workload. DESIGN: Daily record of all BUMPH landing on the desk of a general practitioner in one year. SETTING: Mixed practice with one full time and two job sharing principals. RESULTS: 5100 pages of BUMPH arrived during the year. The most prolific source of origin was health authorities (1549 pages). Fridays, Mondays, and the day after a holiday were the days BUMPH was most frequently seen. CONCLUSIONS: BUMPH is a major source of workload. One way of avoiding it is not to work on the day after a day off.