Patient left with misaligned shoulder after hospital cancelled surgery

A NHS board has apologised to a patient left with a misaligned shoulder after their operation was cancelled.

The patient complained to the Scottish Public Standards Ombudsman after they were admitted to hospital suffering from alcohol related seizures, where it was discovered they had a shoulder fracture.

NHS Tayside discharged the patient with a date for surgery to realign the fracture – but medics missed that the shoulder was healing out of alignment evident up to three days before.

The operation was then cancelled – the health board this was due to an emergency admission that had to be prioritised.

When the patient was seen the following week, a consultant determined the fracture had healed to the extent that surgery was no longer an option.

In their complaint, the patient said that their shoulder is now misaligned, causing them discomfort in daily life and affecting their ability to work.

A spokesperson for NHS Tayside said, “We are sincerely sorry that treatment and care in this case fell below the standard we would expect. We have met with the patient and apologised directly to them.

“We always take the feedback we receive from the Scottish Public Services Ombudsman very seriously and have addressed all the recommendations within the report.”

The Scottish Public Standards Ombudsman (SPSO) investigated the complaint and found that there were missed opportunities for surgical intervention.

In the report it was found there was a “lack of ownership” of the patient’s case, which caused a number of small delays, leading to the window for an operation passing.

Among its recommendations the SPSO said the health board should apologise to the patient.

The watchdog added that care should be taken to record discussions around patient care, that “expertise should be obtained promptly” and “the board should ensure that there is effective communication and that delays are avoided”.