A freedom of information request submitted to NHS Trusts by Citrix has found that only 34 percent of respondents had a Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) policy in place.
The request also revealed that only 49 percent of the Trusts surveyed were aware of whether personal devices were being used at work.
This news comes at a time when the use of personal devices for work is becoming increasingly common, especially in enterprises. A recent MicroMarket Monitor report claimed that the UK will see some of the biggest growth in the mobile device management market in coming years, which will almost quadruple between 2013 and 2019.
The use of BYOD in healthcare brings particular challenges due to the confidentiality of the data involved and the high degree of government oversight and regulation.
"NHS Trusts strive to balance excellent care, reduced costs and a compliant approach to handling confidential data," said Jason Tooley, UK country manager at Citrix.
He added: "As these findings show, an opportunity exists for those NHS Trusts to invest in a range of solutions from virtualisation to full enterprise mobility management to empower employees to work in the way they want, whilst ultimately helping Caldicott Guardians in protecting confidentiality.
"This freedom can have a positive effect for the whole organisation, with improved productivity that can ultimately lead to a better level of patient care."
Citrix approached 35 NHS Trusts across the UK.
