Skip to content

News

Keep up to date with the latest news, research and activity in patient safety.

Burnham urged to resolve infected blood scandal ‘injustices’

Infected blood scandal victims are urging the Prime Minister to "resolve injustices" within the compensation scheme.
Campaigners and victims are demanding swift action to accelerate payments and address growing concerns, including criticism that the compensation body is requiring "unreasonably high standards of evidence".
A dossier containing handwritten letters and supporting documents is set to be handed into Downing Street on Wednesday by campaigners ahead of Andy Burnham’s first Prime Minister’s Questions.
The move follows the conclusion of the Infected Blood Inquiry earlier this year, which investigated what has been dubbed the worst treatment disaster in NHS history.
Between the 1970s and early 1990s, more than 30,000 people in the UK contracted HIV and hepatitis C after being given contaminated blood and blood products.
The scandal has led to more than 3,000 deaths, with survivors continuing to live with lifelong health implications.
Read full story
Source: The Independent, 2 September 2026
Patient Safety Learning

Gaps in NHS end-of-life care ‘denying ill children chance to die at home’

Seriously ill children are being denied the chance to die at home because the NHS in many parts of England is flouting its legal duty to provide the care needed to make that happen, critics say.
The widespread failure to provide at-home end-of-life care is forcing children who want to die at home to instead do so in hospital. Campaigners have described it as “cruel”.
The postcode lottery in palliative care means some of the almost 89,000 under-19s in England who have a life-limiting condition may not get their wish to die at home. Medical advances mean their numbers have almost trebled since 2003-04, and the complexities of their illnesses have increased. About 1,600 die each year.
Nick Carroll, the chief executive of the charity Together for Short Lives, said: “It is shocking that children with serious illnesses are waiting to leave hospital because the health and care system is not taking responsibility for their community care. To deny families the chance to spend precious moments together at home before their child dies is simply cruel.”
Read full story
Source: The Guardian, 2 September 2026
Patient Safety Learning

Second trust’s delay telling Southport victims of data breaches was ‘appalling’

An ambulance trust waited nearly two months before informing victims of the 2024 Southport attack that their patient records may have been accessed inappropriately by staff, HSJ has discovered.
North West Ambulance Service Trust began a formal investigation into potential breaches of privacy in May after HSJ  revealed that University Hospitals of Liverpool Group had discovered 48 staff had accessed the records of Southport victims. 
By 20 May, NWAS had identified 14 staff whose accessing of the records of 13 patients might not have been justified. The trust alerted the Information Commissioner’s Office to the potential breaches on 6 July.
HSJ has obtained the trust’s communications with the regulator.
It said “FOIs, public investigations and press release[s]” about unauthorised access over the Southport attack had “prompted a review” of its own systems.
The claim was made despite evidence that NWAS became aware in early 2025 that its staff might also have breached patient confidentiality.
Read full story (paywalled)
Source: HSJ, 2 September 2026
Patient Safety Learning

Third of sexual misconduct allegations against doctors are from colleagues

More than a third of sexual misconduct complaints made against doctors at tribunals come from their colleagues, new data indicate.
Figures from the Medical Practitioners Tribunal Service (MPTS) show that it handled 48 cases involving sexual misconduct allegations against doctors in 2025. Of these, 37.5% of allegations were made by a healthcare colleague, and 35.4% were allegations involving patients.
Overall, the MPTS considered 270 cases in 2025 during 150 hearings. Allegations of dishonesty (27.4%) were most common, followed by cases involving sexual misconduct (17.8%).
Other types of cases involved clinical concerns, doctors who do not recognise that they have an adverse health condition impairing their fitness to practise, violent or abusive behaviour, substance misuse, and discrimination.
The new data relate to all types of allegations heard by MPTS tribunals. Not all the allegations will have been proved, as tribunals make independent decisions based on the evidence presented. The MPTS said that in some cases doctors may have faced allegations made by more than one person, covering more than one category.
Fiona Monk, MPTS chair, said, “These figures paint a deeply concerning picture for those working in healthcare. Healthcare professionals should be free to do their jobs without fear of becoming a target of sexual misconduct.
“I know concerns have been raised about how some of these cases have been handled. I have had many conversations with those raising concerns, which have shown me that we all share the desire to root out sexual misconduct across the healthcare system.”
Read full story
Source: BMJ, 28 August 2026

Patient Safety Learning

US health officials exclude measles-related deaths in Pennsylvania from counts

Top US health officials and government agencies are currently not including the two recent measles-associated deaths in Pennsylvania in their counts.
“This is highly unusual,” said Debra Houry, former chief medical officer of the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). She noted that this did not happen with the three deaths reported from measles in Texas and New Mexico last year.
Robert F Kennedy Jr, the secretary of the US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), gave the wrong number of measles deaths in a recent interview with Fox News.
“In 10 years, there have been three measles deaths in America,” he said, comparing that with deaths from “food-induced illness” – a category the CDC does not appear to track. “The media and certain demagogue politicians are constantly trying to scare us about infectious disease,” Kennedy said, adding that he was attempting to “redirect attention and resource [sic] to the thing that’s really killing Americans, which are foodborne diseases”.
There were three deaths associated with measles in the US last year, the first deaths from the virus in a decade. But Pennsylvania also reported two measles-related deaths in August, including at least one newborn who died soon after birth.
Kennedy has suggested that these two deaths were “fabricated”.
The CDC has also stopped short of reporting deaths from measles in 2026.
The agency posted a note on Friday saying it was delaying its weekly update, keeping the number at zero. On Sunday, the measles landing page appears to have been updated twice, with the two deaths first reported and then replaced with an asterisk.
Read full story
Source: The Guardian, 31 August 2026
Patient Safety Learning

AI physiotherapy service cleared for all community pathways

Flok Health has expanded the regulatory clearance for its AI physiotherapy clinic to cover the autonomous assessment and treatment of patients across all musculoskeletal (MSK) and pelvic health pathways.
The company’s Class IIa medical device certification previously covered care for back pain and sciatica but has now been extended to conditions including hip and knee problems, urinary incontinence and other pelvic health conditions.
Flok said its technology can manage a patient’s care pathway from diagnostic assessment through to treatment and discharge without a clinician being directly involved.
Patients access the clinic through a mobile app and receive interactive video appointments that adapt to their responses in real time. The service is available 24 hours a day and accepts self-referrals from patients.
Finn Stevenson, chief executive and co-founder of Flok Health, said: ““Since launching our Class IIa back pain service last year, we’ve seen the incredible impact that’s achievable when technology can autonomously deliver a patient’s entire treatment journey – from diagnostic assessment through to treatment delivery and discharge.
“Traditional care providers are fundamentally constrained by supply-demand mismatch. Without the expansion of safe and effective autonomous care providers like Flok, patients will continue to face unacceptably long waits for care, clinical staff will continue to be unsustainably overstretched, and both the quality and quantity of care deliverable at scale will remain bottlenecked.
“We’re therefore delighted that this change to our Class IIa regulatory clearance will allow us to expand our AI clinic across all community physiotherapy pathways, transforming access and quality of care for the tens of millions of Britons who suffer from these debilitating conditions.”
Read full story
Source: Digital Health, 25 August 2026
Patient Safety Learning

Thousands of women suffer with undiagnosed PTSD after childbirth

Thousands of women across the UK develop undiagnosed post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) each year after giving birth, new research has found.
According to a report, the condition is being missed in at least 15,000 women as many GPs mistake PTSD for postnatal depression, which means they do not urgently receive specialist help.
The warning comes after two damning reports into maternity and neonatal services in England from Baroness Amos and Donna Ockenden, which found that mothers and babies were being failed by the NHS.
The report, conducted by University of East Anglia and published in the British Journal of General Practice, has urged the health service to better equip GPs to ensure more women don’t fall through the gaps.
According to recent figures, suicide remained the leading cause of death among women between six weeks and one year after pregnancy in the UK during 2021-2023.
These deaths have been described as the "tip of the iceberg", arguing that many more women are living with serious mental health difficulties but are unable to access the support they need.
Read full story
Source: The Independent, 29 August 2026
Patient Safety Learning

NHS to offer free high-street cholesterol tests in England

The NHS in England is to offer free finger-prick blood tests for cholesterol on the high street for the first time under plans to reduce heart disease and stroke deaths by a quarter within the next decade.
The seven-minute tests will be available at participating pharmacies as part of a national rollout to spot “ticking timebombs” earlier.
People aged 40 to 84 who are not pregnant and have not had a blood test in the past year will be eligible to walk in and get tested.
Blood will be taken from a person’s fingertip using a lancet – a small, sharp medical tool used to prick the skin – and analysed immediately. A pharmacist prescriber can then provide lifestyle advice and determine whether any treatment, such as statins, may be needed.
Patients will receive a copy of their results by email. They will also be offered a blood pressure check as part of a clinical consultation with a pharmacist prescriber.
Details of the scheme – the first of its kind globally – were announced during the European Society of Cardiology’s annual congress in Munich, the world’s largest heart conference.
David Webb, the chief pharmaceutical officer for England, said pharmacies could be a vital first line of defence against serious illness.
He said: “By making it easier for people to get a quick and convenient cholesterol health check on their local high street, we can spot ticking timebombs earlier, helping people take action, and prevent heart attacks and strokes before they happen.
“This is the latest in a series of initiatives involving pharmacies in delivering care previously only offered in GP surgeries as part of the 10-year health plan to bring care closer to where people live.”
Read full story
Source: The Guardian, 31 August 2026
Patient Safety Learning

How serial fraudster secured nine senior managerial roles

A fraudster secured 13 management and administrative jobs over 10 years, despite extensive pre- and post-recruitment checks by trusts, commissioners, national bodies, and recruitment agencies, HSJ has discovered. 
Amran Hussain, who consistently lied about his experiences and qualifications, was sentenced in July to four years in jail  for defrauding NHS employers of almost £170,000.
HSJ  has now discovered that Mr Hussain secured eight jobs at Agenda for Change band eight in a 19-month period between February 2021 and September 2022. For part of November 2021, Mr Hussain held posts at three NHS organisations at the same time. 
A recurring pattern emerged across his employment: shortly after starting work, he would take sick leave and remain absent until his contract ended or was terminated, meaning he did little or no work and gained none of the experience he claimed.
HSJ  asked the eight organisations where Mr Hussain held a band eight job what checks they carried out before employing him.
Read full story (paywalled)
Source: HSJ, 1 September 2026
Patient Safety Learning

Doctors’ AI scribes get names of drugs and diagnoses wrong, NHS watchdog warns

AI technology that listens to and transcribes patients’ consultations with doctors can put them at risk by getting the names of drugs and illnesses wrong, an NHS watchdog has warned.
In one case a woman was left badly shaken when the AI scribe’s summary of her conversation wrongly said she had demyelination – serious nerve damage that can lead to multiple sclerosis.
It was only when the patient, an NHS health professional, queried the AI tool’s record of the result of her MRI scan that the hospital corrected it to what it should have been – “null demyelination”.
Healthwatch England has highlighted the case and other mistakes by AI scribes to show that the technology, which the NHS is rolling out rapidly, is a potential threat to patient safety. Unless detected, errors could end up in patients’ medical records and affect their care, it said.
Read full article.
Source: The Guardian, 31 August 2026
Related reading
Ambient voice technology: exploring the patient safety risks (Patient Safety Learning)
Mark Hughes

New heart attack definition promises better care for women

Doctors have agreed the world’s first universal definition of a heart attack, paving the way for millions of women to finally receive better treatment after decades of being “deprioritised”.
In one of the biggest procedural shake-ups in a generation, the world’s four leading cardiovascular health groups have signed off on new guidance for healthcare professionals when seeing suspected heart attack patients.
Historically, some less common forms of heart attack, which evidence shows typically affect women far more than men, have been coded as less important, with treatment and care often worse as a result.
Until now, experts said, women had been getting less effective treatments, which did not always target the specific cause of their heart attack and could even make them more unwell.
The new guidance will upgrade three types of attack that are up to 10 times more common in women and often caused by childbirth, exercise and emotional stress.
Read full article.
Source: The Guardian, 28 August 2026
Related reading
Women’s heart health is a patient safety issue
Mark Hughes

MP demands answers from Northern Care Alliance over patient safety allegations

An MP has written to Northern Care Alliance NHS Foundation Trust’s Chief Executive seeking answers following reports of alleged failures in patient care across its hospitals.
An investigation by The Independent and Channel 4 reported allegations from whistleblowers that patients had died during surgery without adequate investigation, while others had experienced delays to cancer diagnoses.
The investigation also reported claims that some patients had been left dying or in pain in overcrowded A&E corridors, while others had undergone invasive treatments that might have been avoided if their care had not been delayed.
The reports have prompted Elsie Blundell, MP for Heywood and Middleton North, to contact the Trust’s Chief Executive.
Read full article.
Source: Building Better Healthcare, 28 August 2026
Mark Hughes

Teenage girl has dissolvable heart implant the size of 10p coin fitted in UK first

A teenage girl has become the first UK patient to receive a dissolvable implant designed to close a hole in her heart roughly the size of a 10 pence piece.
Lillie Yale, a 14-year-old from Warrington, had previously faced the prospect of a permanent metal device, which could have disrupted her dream of becoming a professional rugby player.
Instead, the biodegradable device will serve as a scaffold, allowing Lillie’s heart to repair itself over coming months and years before fully dissolving and leaving no trace behind.
The operation was carried out in June by surgical experts at Alder Hey Children’s NHS Foundation Trust in Liverpool.
The hospital secured a special licence from the medicines regulator to use Memosorb on Lillie.
Read full article.
Source: The Independent, 28 August 2026
Mark Hughes

Trust fails in bid to overturn CQC warning notice

One of the NHS’s most troubled trusts made an unsuccessful attempt to prevent the Care Quality Commission issuing it with a warning notice.
The CQC inspected East Kent University Foundation Trust’s Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother Hospital in Margate in January.
The commission found the hospital’s urgent and emergency services under severe pressure and on the point of declaring a critical incident. At one stage, the inspectors observed that 28 patients were being cared for in temporary escalation areas, with 50 more in the main waiting area and others in specialty and observation areas.
East Kent appealed against the warning notice, but this was not upheld by the CQC. However, two points relating to monitoring of nutrition and hydration, and inconsistent physical health monitoring in the mental health lounge were removed from the required actions.
Read full article (paywalled).
Source: Health Service Journal, 28 August 2026
Mark Hughes

NHS bosses warn of chaos in ADHD and autism care

Autism and ADHD care is at risk of descending into chaos, NHS bosses are warning, as costs spiral out of control and unregulated private providers capitalise on the huge demand for help.
The NHS Alliance, which represents health managers, says the current system represents a "bad deal" for patients and taxpayers alike.
It points to big variations in what the NHS is being charged for assessments and care - in one case, a local health board was paying £300 to £3,000 for similar services.
The group says there has been a rapid expansion in new providers – both private firms and charities are involved - and NHS managers are struggling to ensure the quality and safety of care being provided.
The government said an independent review into services and what is behind the rising demand, including whether there is over-diagnosis of these conditions, would be published soon.
Read full article.
Source, BBC News, 28 August 2026
Mark Hughes

Trust pioneers voice recognition technology to enhance surgical patient safety

Surgical teams at Stockport NHS Foundation Trust are leading the way in patient safety innovation after becoming the first NHS trust in the UK to pilot a groundbreaking voice recognition system in a surgical setting.
The new Voice-Care technology is designed to improve compliance with critical safety procedures, reduce the risk of human error and streamline operating theatre workflows.
The hands-free digital platform enables surgical teams to complete essential safety checks through spoken commands, removing the need for manual paperwork while supporting full compliance with World Health Organisation Surgical Safety Checklist standards.
Operating theatres are fast-paced environments where distractions can occur. Voice-Care acts as a digital co-pilot for clinical teams, guiding staff through key safety protocols and ensuring crucial steps are not missed. By automating documentation, the system also reduces administrative burden and allows clinicians to focus more of their time on delivering patient care.
Read full article.
Source: National Health Executive, 24 August 2026
Mark Hughes
Registered address: Patient Safety Learning, China Works SB203, 100 Black Prince Road Vauxhall, London, SE1 7SJ

Account

Navigation

Search

Search

Configure browser push notifications
Chrome (Android)
  1. Tap the lock icon next to the address bar.
  2. Tap Permissions → Notifications.
  3. Adjust your preference.
Chrome (Desktop)
  1. Click the padlock icon in the address bar.
  2. Select Site settings.
  3. Find Notifications and adjust your preference.