Trust records 17 so-called 'never events' - serious medical incidents - in last three years

Surgery on the wrong part of the body and objects left in patients after procedure, these are some of the 17 “never events” reported at Lincolnshire’s hospitals over the past three years.
The Pilgrim Hospital in Boston is one of the ULHT's hospitalsThe Pilgrim Hospital in Boston is one of the ULHT's hospitals
The Pilgrim Hospital in Boston is one of the ULHT's hospitals

The errors, known as 'never events' due to their severity, are recorded as serious incidents which are wholly preventable with the potential to cause significant harm or death.

According to data from NHS Improvement, United Lincolnshire Hospitals Trust has reported a total of eight incidents so far in 2019/20.

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Incidents recorded included wrong implants given to patients and misplaced naso or gastric tubes.

Trust bosses say they take 'never events' “extremely seriously” and investigate them fully.

Since 2017/18, a total of of 17 never events have been recorded at Lincolnshire’s hospitals.

The incidents include administration of medication by wrong route and “retained of foreign objects”.

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Other incidents included two cases of mis-selection of high strength Midazolam during conscious sedation in 2018/19.

Meanwhile, the trust recorded two cases of wrong site surgery, which is defined as a procedure on the wrong part of the body or wrong person, in 2017/18.

So far this year, seven never events have been reported at the county’s hospitals.

The figure is the second highest recorded in the country, along with Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust.

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Most recent data, which includes incidents between April and November 2019, shows two incidents of “retained foreign objects”.

This can include objects such as swabs, needles or guide wires, left inside patients following a procedure.

Dr Neill Hepburn, medical director at ULHT, said: “The trust takes never events extremely seriously.

“As a trust, we report never events immediately and these are thoroughly investigated to establish the circumstances, identify what happened and how we can learn from the incidents and make changes to practice to minimise the risks of it happening again.

“The outcomes of our investigations are shared internally and with our external regulators.”

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