‘Computer error’ removed 1,800 patients from trust’s elective waiting list

A trust has discovered 1,800 patients who were removed by mistake from its elective waiting list.

Barking, Havering and Redbridge University Hospitals Trust chief executive Matthew Trainer wrote to colleagues in the east London health system today to “apologise for the stress this will have caused those experiencing a delay”.

Of the 1,800 patients involved, 600 have been waiting more than a year and roughly 200 have been waiting for more than two years.

Mr Trainer’s note explained: “The patients have been waiting to see our specialists in routine clinics in gynaecology, neurology, neurosurgery and ophthalmology.”

It continued: “As we have been working through our waiting lists, we have discovered a problem with one of them that was used to deal with the backlog created by the pandemic.

“It contained routine referrals that were submitted by GPs who wanted their patients to be seen by a specialist, but for whom there were no appointments available due to covid-19. Unfortunately, these patients were removed automatically from this list before they had been seen.”

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Source: HSJ, 26 April 2022