A recent BBC article has highlighted issues for over 5,000 patients who did not receive routine screening letters from the NHS, for a range of issues from a variety of cancers to aneurysm screening, dating back to mistakes from 2008. 

Whilst it appears around 10 people who did not receive a letter had since passed away, it is not known whether the failure to be screened caused or contributed to their deaths. It is not reported whether the failure resulted in any patients developing or suffering worse outcomes as a result of the failure, and as such, if there were any avoidable health problems. 

The issue has been linked to some GP practices not fully completing electronic patient registration details, which meant that their data was not accessible when screening letters were sent out. The NHS advise that the issue has now been resolved, and NHS England has provided guidance to GP practices and broader patient care bodies. 

Clearly, issues like this are concerning, but they need to be considered against an estimated 15,000,000 letters being sent for screening each year. That will not take away from any concern or potential ill health caused to those affected, but does provide some reassurance that only a very small percentage of patients were impacted. 

The article also highlights that patient care starts from the ground up, and what may appear to be a minor mistake by any member of staff can have lasting consequences.