Trust reviewing harm to 175 patients after referrals breakdown

Ashford and St Peter’s Hospitals Foundation Trust, has apologised after nearly 1,000 patients faced delays due to a breakdown of referral systems. It was found 175 of these patients were considered urgent cases by their GPs and are now being reviewed for clinical harm. 

When the error was discovered, the patients were added to the referral tacker by 9 July, however until that point, they had not been on any patient waiting list, nor were they visible to either operational management or clinical teams.

Trust chief executive Suzanne Rankin said in a statement: “We are very sorry for any inconvenience these delays may have caused patients and we contacted all concerned and issued appointments where necessary.”

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Source: HSJ, 19 August 2021