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Twenty-nine staff have been suspended at a single hospital and community trust group in recent months over alleged information governance breaches, HSJ has learned. Lincolnshire Community and Hospitals Group (LCHG) – made up of Lincolnshire Community Health Services Trust and United Lincolnshire Teaching Hospitals Trust – confirmed in board papers earlier this month that the staff had been suspended as a result of “inappropriate access to confidential patient information”. LCHG said 27 cases arose from “two significant information governance incidents” this summer, one involving a staff member who was a patient and the other a patient case with police involvement. The group would not elaborate on the incidents. It said two of the 29 suspensions were unrelated to the two main incidents and, as of 22 October, five of the 27 staff had been found to have had legitimate access, with no case to answer. It is not clear if the five have returned to work. Investigations into the other cases are ongoing, along with some disciplinary hearings. The group also confirmed it had escalated the incidents to the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO). It did not confirm which trust the staff work at or whether patients and families had been informed. The group said its “strong stance” on the cases reflected the national position reinforced by NHS England chief executive Sir Jim Mackey, whose guidance in September told trusts to “strongly consider suspending” staff facing a misconduct case. Board papers said the group was taking a “zero-tolerance approach” to the breaches, “as required by NHSE”. Read full story (paywlled) Source: HSJ, 12 November 2026

The Independent Sector Complaints Adjudication Service (ISCAS) will become the Private Healthcare Ombudsman on 1 April 2027, following approval of its application for Ombudsman Membership by the Ombudsman Association. ISCAS has provided independent adjudication of patient complaints about private healthcare since 2001. Its nearly 300 subscribing providers, across all four nations of the UK, range from major hospital groups to independent clinics, doctors and NHS private patient units. The Private Healthcare Information Network (PHIN) notes that 97% of independent healthcare providers in England subscribe to the scheme. Ombudsman status recognises that the scheme meets the Association’s criteria for independence, fairness, effectiveness, openness, transparency and accountability. The Association’s Validation Committee said the application reflected “careful preparation, mature governance arrangements, and a clear commitment to meeting both the letter and spirit of the OA’s membership criteria”. The Centre for Effective Dispute Resolution (CEDR), an independent registered charity, has worked with ISCAS since 2015, initially hosting the service and then acquiring it in 2022. ISCAS now operates independently as part of the CEDR Group, giving the service a strong institutional base while preserving its impartial decision-making. This relationship will continue when ISCAS becomes the Private Healthcare Ombudsman. Sally Taber, Director of ISCAS, said: “For many years, ISCAS has provided an independent complaints service for patients and providers across the UK’s independent healthcare sector. Recognition as an ombudsman builds on that established role and provides further reassurance that patients have access to an impartial and trusted service when concerns cannot be resolved directly with their healthcare provider. This is an important development for the sector and one that strengthens its commitment to high standards of patient care and complaint handling. We will continue to work closely with our subscribing providers, representative bodies and regulators across all four nations of the UK as we make the transition to the Private Healthcare Ombudsman.” Full press release attached below: PHO_Press_Release_30Oct2026.pdf

Dr Joe Farmer tells us how an encounter with a rude consultant led to him and Dr Chris Turner in 2016 setting up Civility Saves Lives. He explains how they have created a movement that is evidence based, people focused and dynamic, with one thing in mind—improving workplace behaviours in a way that ultimately improves patient outcomes.

This is the second of two investigation reports into crisis care in emergency departments (EDs). An interim report was published in April 2026 following early identification of a significant legal, policy and safety gap in the care of people in mental health crisis in EDs. This report is part of the Health Services Safety Investigations Body (HSSIB)’s wider work on safety issues for people experiencing a mental health crisis who come into contact with urgent and emergency care services. A related investigation is examining the 999 and 111 response to mental health crisis and will report its findings in spring 2027. The two investigations consider different points in the same pathway. Wider health and care system issues are included where they directly affect ED care, and further themes may be brought together in a separate, final report drawing on evidence from both investigations. Around 3% of ED attendances are mental health-related. However, people experiencing mental health problems are twice as likely as other patients to remain in the ED for more than 12 hours.

The NHS chief executive is set to have equal rank in government to the health department’s permanent secretary when NHS England is abolished – meaning a proposal to downgrade their status has been rejected by ministers. The decision was made by health and social care secretary Yvette Cooper last week, after several weeks of deliberation over the choices she needs to make ahead of NHSE being scrapped, officials have been told. Ms Cooper had decided the NHS CEO post will sit “alongside the permanent secretary” of the Department of Health and Social Care and with “equal rank” in government, the current NHSE CEO Sir Jim Mackey said at a staff meeting last week. She wants a return to a departmental structure very close to that immediately before the creation of NHS England in 2012, Sir Jim said. This would include a distinct “NHS executive” group within the department, to run NHS-focused national work, led by the NHS CEO. The decision means the NHS CEO will report directly to the health and social care secretary and, in central government, to the cabinet secretary, after NHSE is abolished, which is due to take place at the end of March.

Transformative Simulation considers how simulation can be intentionally used beyond education to understand and contribute to change within healthcare systems. The Identification Simulation-Based Intention focuses on using simulation to uncover risks, vulnerabilities, unmet needs and other aspects of healthcare systems that may otherwise remain difficult to see. This resource from hub topic lead Sharon Weldon brings together a short Transformative Simulation thought piece, visual explainer and selected examples from the literature demonstrating how simulation has been used to identify patient safety and system challenges in practice. Further resources from Sharon on Transformative Simulation: Using simulation to improve patient safety and healthcare systems: The Improvement Intention Using simulation to strengthen workforce participation, belonging and wellbeing: The Inclusion Intention Using simulation to involve patients and communities in shaping safer care: The Involvement Intention

AI is increasingly becoming part of how health care is delivered. This comes with both potential, for example to reduce administrative burden, and risks, such as widening inequalities. It also raises complex questions about how AI tools should be regulated, and challenges around how to assess, monitor and oversee its safety and effectiveness. Commissioned as the research partner to the MHRA's independent National Commission into the Regulation of AI in Healthcare, this report brings together findings from the Health Foundation's polling of public attitudes towards AI with new findings from a UK-wide public deliberative exercise exploring what the public thinks regulators should prioritise and what is needed to build and maintain public trust in AI regulation.  The findings underscore the importance of public trust, safety and accountability in the regulation of AI. Overall, it found that participants largely support the use of AI in health care, but that support is conditional on strong safeguards where accuracy and human oversight are essential. The report presents the findings of the research, including the public’s awareness of and attitudes to AI use in health care, priorities for regulation and potential approaches, and principles for regulating AI. The final section sets out the implications of these findings for policy.

One of the aims of the Healthcare Financial Management Association (HFMA) Four Nations Group is to share learning and insights across the United Kingdom. At its June meeting, the group focused on productivity. The meeting opened with an update on the position in England, followed by a discussion with members from all four nations on differences in measurement, priorities and improvement strategies. This discussion paper summarises the conversation and is intended to inform members’ thinking and support wider shared learning.

The NHS faces unprecedented financial pressure, requiring the identification of cash-releasing interventions (CRIs). To support evaluation of this, the authors of this study established five criteria based on relevant frameworks. They conducted an evidence review of published and grey literature (2019–2025), identifying and evaluating CRIs aligned with NHS England’s ʻthree shifts’.

The Health Economics Unit (HEU) has developed a framework for the ethical and effective decommissioning and disinvestment in clinical services, in partnership with the Healthcare Financial Management Association (HFMA).

Do NHS organisations have enough staff, with the right skills and expertise, to vet new digital technologies before they are deployed on the shop floor? A report from the Health Services Safety Investigations Body on advice and guidance unearthed some uncomfortable truths about digital clinical safety assurance. Among its findings was that providers deploying the electronic referral service (e-RS), which hosts A&G, could not evidence compliance with a key digital clinical risk management stanardard. Dean Mawson, founder of DPM Digital Health and national CSO training lead, told The Download that with the average trust running upwards of 200 digital health systems, a single full-time CSO would struggle to do their job properly.  One of the reasons for this is that most CSOs hold the title in addition to a clinical day job. Sometimes, senior figures like chief clinical or nursing information officers are expected to become CSOs too. Youssof Oskrochi, one of the paper’s authors and a CSO himself, told The Download that this part-time, bolted-on approach underappreciates what work goes into digital clinical safety assurance. He said: “AI is a black box, EPRs are complex, a lot of the technology now has generative AI or large language models in. You need at least some expertise to understand the technical features of this product. “If you’re expecting someone to put [a safety case] out on half a day a week, you either have to expect that’s going to take a long time, or you’re

People sexually abused as children who seek help in later life for mental health problems are being failed by the NHS, senior doctors have told the BBC. The Royal College of Psychiatrists is issuing a public apology for what it says is decades of mismanagement and misdiagnosis in the UK. For some, it has worsened their traumas, it said. The college said mental health staff have been too focussed on treating symptoms rather than exploring how past traumatic experiences can still affect patients. Support is improving, it said, but there must be better training and more investment - something NHS bosses have said is being introduced. Immediate past president of the college, Dr Lade Smith, said she was "sorry" that, too often, victims have suffered "avoidable harm when seeking help". The report details how treatment has sometimes been inappropriate, while people have been re-traumatised by the experience of repeated assessments and history-taking and not always being believed. Dr Smith told the BBC it was clear people were not getting the support they needed, and that this was not just a failing of psychiatrists, but the whole mental health system. "Services are so fragmented. The system is set up to provide short, discrete episodes of care. Psychiatrists do not get the time to build up a relationship with patients so they can be properly supported. "They are lucky if they get eight sessions of therapy, when it could take eight sessions for a person just to disclose the abuse. "And these are just the people who get support – many don't even get seen by mental health services because services are so stretched," she said. Read full story Source: BBC News, 26 August 2026

Complaints about autism and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) services in England have more than tripled in five years, official figures show, with the NHS ombudsman warning of years-long waits and patients paying thousands of pounds for private care. One woman was removed from an ADHD medication waiting list without warning after almost four years, leaving her without the support she needed for about six months. Another patient was given an autism assessment lasting just 50 minutes that failed to follow guidance from the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence, while a man referred to an ADHD service that was not yet operational ended up paying almost £4,000 for private treatment. Complaints rose from 410 in 2021-22 to 1,257 in 2025-26, an increase of more than 200%, as referrals and the number of people waiting for assessment, treatment and support also increased. The parliamentary and health service ombudsman, Paula Sussex, said ADHD and autism services were “under significant pressure, with demand outstripping capacity”, adding: “While commissioning cannot solve these supply constraints, the way services are designed, commissioned and delivered can compound the pressure people experience and make it harder to make the best use of available resources.” She said: “Right now, the system is too complex and inconsistent, leaving too many patients falling through the gaps.” A report, called Improving ADHD and Autism Services: Commissioning With Confidence, shares the ombudsman’s findings based on 3,000 complaints. It found recurring issues, including uncertainty around patients’ right to choose a provider. Under right to choose, patients in England can choose from eligible NHS-funded providers for certain services, including some independent providers. However, the ombudsman found uncertainty around how this right applied, with patients sometimes being told wrongly that they could not exercise it. Read full story Source: The Guardian, 26 August 2026