Barts and the London trust has apologised to 573 patients who had to wait an average of 34 weeks for their operations.

An investigation by the trust found that one of its seven bookings teams was offering patients operations at short notice, against NHS rules that say 21 days' notice is required. When they did not take up the offer, patients were put to the back of the queue and not reported as breaches.

The trust has started "appropriate disciplinary action" against those involved and reviewed its procedures. There was no evidence of clinical harm to patients.

For more information, see www.bartsandthelondon.org.uk

Topics