News bulletin: Thousands of Liverpool patients miss out on vital cancer screenings

Around 1,800 patients with potential cancer symptoms were not given automatic second appointments by Liverpool's University Hospital NHS Foundation trust.

Patients on a two-week wait pathway were not offered a second consultation if they did not make an initially scheduled session. The trust immediately referred itself to the Care Quality Commission.

National guidance states that a second booking should happen automatically and the Trust conceded in its board minutes that it was not communicated to GPs in some cases.

A report into key risks identified within the trust said an incident management group had been established, chaired by medical director Dr Jim Gardner, to “systematically review this group of patients in order to establish whether they still require an appointment and whether they have suffered any harm.”

It added that its own investigation found that the lack of referral “leaves a risk that these patients could require specialist review but have not received it and their GP may be unaware.”

💡Residents in Liverpool are now able to apply to have energy efficiency measures installed which could help cut their heating bills by hundreds of pounds per year. The measures may include cavity wall insulation, loft insulation, underfloor insulation, air source heat pumps, solar panels and replacement windows and doors.

🐯 Chester Zoo has welcomed a special new arrival – a critically endangered Sumatran tiger named Dash. The three-year-old has travelled from Ireland, and keepers hope he mates with resident female, Kasarna, who was born at Chester in 2015.