Shocking new figures reveal that 800 women who underwent CervicalCheck screening were not issued with their results due an IT issue.
Updates to the Quest Diagnostics lab in Virginia in the US has led to the day that has also seen result letters also not issued to some GPs.
The HSE told RTE it “sincerely apologised for the issue, and the confusion and considerable anxiety it may have caused for some women.”
The tests were carried out between 1 October 2018 and 25 June this year and were mainly repeat tests for human papillomavirus (HPV).
The HSE has said that an IT update was taking place at the laboratory and “results are now being issued manually to GPs until that is completed”.
And the problem was only uncovered after a woman raised concerns about a delay in getting the results of her test.
A HSE spokesman said: “The existence of an IT issue was identified following engagement with the Department of Health in relation to representations from a woman using our services,”
And shockingly, some GPs have said this week that they have yet to receive the CervicalCheck result reports.
CervicalCheck has asked Quest Diagnostics to issue these reports manually, which the lab claiming it will do it as soon as the IT hiccup is fixed.
The HSE said that all necessary updates and testing to ensure electronic results are issued to women and GPs will be finalised in the next two weeks.
Frances McNamara, head of the HSE National Screening Service, said: “We have identified approximately 800 women who were regrettably not issued with a results letter.
“In response on 1 July, CervicalCheck wrote to these women identified and advised them to contact their GP to receive their results.”
When a woman’s CervicalCheck test is processed by a lab, results of the test are transferred to the Cervical Screening Register.
When this happens, the woman’s GP should receive electronic notification of the results and the woman should receive a letter that her result is available and information on the next step.
The HSE said that its priority is to ensure that the women involved are kept informed and receive their results promptly.
It said it is closely monitoring the matter and engaging with the laboratory.
