NHS cuts Capita cervical cancer screening contract | Society

NHS leaders have reduced the cervical cancer screening service internally after expressing dissatisfaction with the performance.

NHS England Executive Director Simon Stevens told the House of Commons Public Accounts Committee that the amendments would come into effect in June.

Referring to the cervical cancer screening system, Stevens told MPs: "In recent years, they have been administered under the Capita Primary Health Care Services contract. As you know, we are not satisfied with the performance.

"Indeed, as you also know, a problem was highlighted last year when Capita informed us late of the delays in sending the letters. That's why today I am announcing that we will be bringing the cervical cancer screening service back to the NHS Capita starting in June and making a gradual transition through the rest of the year.

Health Minister Steve Brine said last November that Capita's mistakes, which prevented more than 40,000 women from receiving the appropriate smear test information, were unacceptable.

Capita accepted full responsibility and apologized after 43,220 women did not receive an invitation to cervical cancer screening and reminder letters inviting them to make an appointment you for routine screening for cervical cancer of the uterus. In some cases, the women did not receive either one or the other.

In addition, 4,508 women did not receive a letter informing them of the outcome of their cervical cancer screening.

Dr. Krishna Kasaraneni, of the British Medical Association, said, "We have a long history of expressing concerns about Capita's frankly chaotic management of GP support services.

"In particular, we called for the termination of their contract when it was revealed at the end of last year that thousands of patients had not received vital information about screening. cervical cancer, potentially putting them at risk.

"It is normal for NHS England to have followed and removed this service from Capita. From now on, any transition process must be robust and not be carried out as a cost-cutting exercise to the detriment of patient safety. "

A Unison union spokeswoman said: "We are happy to see the service return to the NHS, but it should not have been privatized at first. It can be quite difficult to encourage young women to get tested and this becomes even more difficult when they have no confidence in the results because of this appalling failure.