‘Significant patient harm’ caused by ‘failing’ trust service

Patients were left with “advanced visual impairment” after waiting too long for treatment at a trust given the highest rating for access to services by NHS England, HSJ  has discovered. 

Twenty-one patients in total were found to have suffered some level of harm while on a glaucoma waiting list at East Lancashire Hospitals Trust. 

ELHT’s waiting time performance is ranked in the top of four segments making up NHSE’s National Oversight Framework league table for acute trusts. 

ELHT paused new referrals to its glaucoma service in May this year due to capacity constraints. The trust said the service was “failing to provide timely care” for a condition where delays can cause permanent sight loss. 

A “comprehensive clinical harm review” of 43 patients who had experienced delays in a review or treatment was undertaken by the trust. This discovered “significant patient harm associated with delays in receiving definitive glaucoma surgery”, according to a report prepared by Lancashire and South Cumbria Integrated Care Board. 

The ICB report said: “For several patients, delayed intervention resulted in progression of glaucoma and irreversible visual field loss, with some patients left with advanced visual impairment despite subsequent treatment.” 

Read full story (paywalled)

Source: HSJ, 12 November 2026