External review to be held after report into Morecambe Bay health trust’s urology service

A review of an investigation into the urology service run by the health trust which operates the Royal Lancaster Infirmary has been agreed.
The Royal Lancaster Infirmary.The Royal Lancaster Infirmary.
The Royal Lancaster Infirmary.

In October 2015, University Hospitals of Morecambe Bay NHS Foundation Trust (UHMBT) invited a service review of the trust’s urology surgical service by the Royal College of Surgeons (RCS), London.

This invitation was to review and analyse the quality and safety of the service, and followed the death of Peter Read from Morecambe at the Royal Lancaster Infirmary.

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A review took place in January 2016, which made several recommendations for the trust, and a task group was established within the urology department to deliver the action plan, with delivery monitored through the trust’s governance process.

The trust now wishes to review whether the recommended actions were delivered and whether the changes are embedded in practice today.

Clinicians from York Teaching Hospital NHS Foundation Trust will be carrying out the review, which will take the following form:

Objective of the review:

To establish if the RCS recommendations and subsequent trust action plan was completed or if any actions remain outstanding

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To identify if the RCS 2016 action plan reflected all recommendations and had clear timescales and responsibilities for delivery

To establish whether the action plan was followed through by the trust and urology departments to completion through adoption

To identify whether the progress on action plan was effectively monitored by the trust and urology department and reported through appropriate trust governance processes.

To confirm whether the new practice and policies recommended for adoption are now in place and adhered to at the time of the review and thus to confirm whether the practise change has been embedded in the service

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To evaluate if the changes made have made effective improvements to the service

To identify areas of good practice

To identify areas of practice requires further improvement.

Method for 2019 review:

With reference to the RCS recommendations as defined above:

Review relevant documentations

Review of trust policies and procedures

Review of service provision if needed to confirm the completion of recommendation

Review of safety outcome if needed to establish the recommendations were acted upon.

Review the reporting and governance processes from ward to board, to ensure they are robust and fit for purpose.

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Interview of key clinical colleagues (doctors, nurses, managers other staff members as required)

Disclosure: None of the visiting team should be former or present UHMBT staff or related through family/socially to the current urology staff interviewed.

Time frame and report:

Report to be produced, which will include any further recommendations identified as part of the review, within 15 working days after visit and receipt of all relevant information.

Trust medical director Dr Shahedal Bari said: “I am pleased to confirm that the trust has commissioned York Teaching Hospital NHS Foundation Trust to undertake an external review of how the trust addressed the findings and recommendations from the 2016 Royal College of Surgeons report into the trust’s urology services.

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“This work is likely to commence before the end of this year, and we expect to receive the report from York team within a month of completion of the review, at which point it will be shared with the NHS England/Improvement and the Care Quality Commission, before it is made available publicly.

“This piece of work is separate from an external independent review commissioned by NHS England/Improvement into the urology service.”