Never event at Shropshire health trust involved 'wrong site' surgery
A serious medical ‘never event’ involving 'wrong site' surgery has happened at the trust running Shropshire's two main hospitals.
The never event, named so because they are incidents that guidelines say should never happen, was recorded by Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital NHS Trust (SaTH), which runs Royal Shrewsbury Hospital and Telford's Princess Royal Hospital.
Dr David Lee, chairman of SaTH's quality and safety assurance committee, told a meeting of the trust board yesterday that an investigation is under way following the recent incident.
Board members were told it involved 'wrong site' surgery, but the exact details have not been disclosed.
Dr Lee said the affected patient is currently recovering.
A report to the board said clinicians have explained the circumstances to the patient and family members.
Wrong-site surgery can involve surgery being performed on the wrong side or site of the body, the wrong surgical procedure or surgery on the wrong patient.
In response, the trust's chief executive Simon Wright said: "It's entirely right we should be taking this extremely seriously."
The trust has recorded two other never events in the past eight months.
