The information given to GPs when patients are discharged from hospital is "inadequate and inaccurate", a nationwide survey of GP practices reports.

Within the past year, 56% of the practices surveyed had seen patient safety put at risk and 70% had seen clinical care compromised owing to late or incomplete discharge information.

The survey of discharge information, administered by the NHS Alliance, included responses from 124 GP practices across 64 primary care trusts.

Just half of the GP practices surveyed said that the information they received was often sufficient. Over 80% had to wait more than 48 hours to receive information after the patient was discharged from hospital. However, a third of practices said that there had been an improvement in punctuality since the previous year.

NHS Alliance chairman Dr Michael Dixon said: "Punctuality is essential, but it is not sufficient. We have found that critical information about medicines and diagnostic tests is missing or inaccurate. That can put patients at risk and lead to avoidable re-admission to hospital.

"We are now calling on the Department to take action again to ensure hospitals understand that providing medical information to their patients' GPs is a vital part of their role."

In 2009, the Care Quality Commission (CQC) called for an improvement in the sharing of information when people move between services. CQC chief executive Cynthia Bower commented at the time: "It's not possible for a clinician to make good decisions about care unless they have key information about a patient."