"Mislaid Patient Records/Notes "

Patient attended pre med clinic one day early June, then attended anaesthetist clinic following morning, in between times, the patients confidential Records/Notes went missing.

Patient was an elderly lady of 83years old, with diabetes, amongst other ailments, was given an appointment to attend Tameside DSEU for a procedure to remove a growth from her throat. Patient delivered to hospital by one of her daughters arriving at 07: 10, having had nothing to eat or drink since early the previous night in readiness for her operation. Daughter was called back to collect her mother at around 14: 00hrs same day having been told that the operation didn't take place as her notes were still missing! The daughter was distraught at the thought that she'd left the hospital at around 09: 30hrs satisfied that her mother would be going through to the Unit within a short space of time and that she (her daughter) wouldn't be allowed to go through with her. Said daughter was so upset that she had to call one of her other sisters to leave her place of work and drive her to the hospital in order to collect their mother. Although the staff on the DSEU couldn't have been any more helpful, and tried to reassure our mother, the fact still remains that our mother was left on her own in the waiting room (without her daughter to comfort her) and, more worrying, her confidential Records/Notes still haven't come to light. Our mother's operation won't be carried out until these notes have been found, and when that will be is anyone's guess. Questions must be raised, how can notes go missing overnight, from one clinic to another? Who is responsible for the safety of said notes? What measures are in place to stop this happening to someone else? The surgeon came to talk with us and assures us that as soon as the notes have been found, our mother's operation can go ahead and another date will be arranged for her. In the meantime, our mum is left wondering what else could go wrong?