Have a question?
033 3772 0409

Clinical Negligence Solicitors

Patient safety at serious risk due to NHS document errors (11 July 2017)

Date: 11/07/2017
Duncan Lewis, Clinical Negligence Solicitors, Patient safety at serious risk due to NHS document errors

It has been found that at least 1,700 patients could have been harmed by a “colossal” blunder in which thousands of patient records and letters were left in a warehouse. Furthermore, officials have said that only two thirds of the 700,000 documents found have been checked, meaning the number at risk is likely to rise. Amongst the documents that were missing in England were cancer test results and child protection notes.

The company responsible for the incident is NHS Shared Business Services (SBS), who were employed in the East Midlands, South West and north-east London to redirect mail for the NHS. It was tasked with passing on documents that had been incorrectly addressed or needed rerouting following a patient moving GPs. However, between 2011 and 2016, a backlog of as many as 709,000 documents ended up in a NHS SBS warehouse.

The National Audit Office (NAO) reviewed how the mistake happened and found that the company had been aware of the problem and the risk of patient harm since 2014. NHS England and the Department of Health were only made aware of the problem in March 2016, but neither Parliament nor the public were informed at this point, under the instruction of Jeremy Hunt.

All investigations into the error are expected to be completed before the end of 2017 and NAO have revealed that the cost of dealing with the problem is likely to amount to at least £6.6 million.

Duncan Lewis Clinical Negligence Team

The Duncan Lewis Clinical Negligence team has significant experience acting in a vast array of claims. Varying from accident and emergency failures to GP negligence claims, to misdiagnosed fractures to wrongful death matters claims. They also act for children and adults who have suffered profound and permanent brain, spinal or neurological injuries and associated disabilities as a consequence of failings in medical care in both NHS and private hospitals. If you have been affected by a mistake made by a doctor or medical professional and think that you may have a claim, please do not hesitate to contact our team of expert solicitors on 03337720409.


For all Clinical Negligence related matter contact us now.Contact Us

Call us now on 033 3772 0409 or click here to send online enquiry.
Duncan Lewis is the trading name of Duncan Lewis (Solicitors) Limited. Registered Office is 143-149 Fenchurch St, London, EC3M 6BL. Company Reg. No. 3718422. VAT Reg. No. 718729013. A list of the company's Directors is displayed at the registered offices address. Authorised and Regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority . Offices all across London and in major cities in the UK. ©Duncan Lewis >>Legal Disclaimer, Copyright & Privacy Policy. Duncan Lewis do not accept service by email.