Bungling IT firm ‘lost 30,000 NHS letters to patients’ in north London sparking an inquiry after leaked memo blamed it on a technical error
- Inquiry launched after 28,563 letters from hospitals to GPs were not delivered
- A ‘clinical harm review’ is under way they after their whereabouts were unknown
- The mistake was blamed on a ‘technical error’ by blunder by IT company Cerner
Almost 30,000 letters containing confidential medical information of NHS patients were lost by a private firm.
The health service has launched an inquiry after 28,563 letters due to be sent from hospitals to GPs were not delivered following a blunder by IT company Cerner.
The Guardian reported that the letters related to outpatient appointments for 22,144 patients at Barnet and Chase Farm hospitals in north London, from June 2019 to last month.
A ‘clinical harm review’ is under way after it was found they had not been dispatched and their whereabouts were unknown.
Almost 30,000 letters containing confidential medical information of NHS patients were lost by a private firm (stock photo)
A leaked memo detailing the loss of the letters, seen by The Guardian, was sent on February 7 by Caroline Clarke, chief executive of the Royal Free London group of hospitals which include Barnet and Chase Farm.
It blamed the mistake on a ‘technical error’ and has reported the blunder to NHS England.
Rachel Power, of the Patients Association, said: ‘Patients who have attended these two hospitals will now be very worried about whether their care might have been compromised by this IT bungle.
‘We know sharing information to join up patient care is a major weakness of the NHS, so it is very disappointing to see that this failure took over six months to be detected. All affected patients must be told what this means for them as soon as possible.’
A spokesman for the Royal Free said: ‘This was declared a serious incident due to the possibility of harm being caused and because of the number of letters involved. No harm has been discovered to date.’
Almost 30,000 letters containing confidential medical information of NHS patients were lost by a private firm (stock photo)