AN administrative error at Nottingham's hospitals has led to more than 60 people waiting more than six weeks to have an MRI scan.
Hospital documents reveal that the error forced 64 patients to wait longer than the recommended target for the scan – the first time such an error had happened in more than two years.
Nottingham's hospitals' trust aims to make sure that anyone who needs this type of scan is offered one within six weeks.
Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is a scan used to diagnose health conditions that affect organs, tissue and bone. The scans are often used to spot tumours.
But a spokesman for the hospital said that there had been "no impact on care or safety".
The hospital documents concluded that the cause of the error was because "the agreed booking process was not followed", and as a result it was having to enlist the help of other organisations to clear and work weekends to try and clear the backlog of patients.
The hospital papers said: "Additional capacity from the mobile unit, other regional units and the University [of Nottingham] has been sourced to ensure headroom for increased demand. Additional weekend working is in place."
Barbara Venes – a member from the Nottingham Local Involvement Network – said: "For those patients that have had to wait this is not good news at all.
"I'm not surprised errors are occurring because the hospital is under a lot of pressure at the moment. People are working at top speed.
"I hope all patients have been notified of the delay."
A spokesman for the trust said: "An administrative booking error in April caused a delay in appointments.
"All patients were reviewed to ensure there was no impact on care or safety. We have resumed our excellent performance record in May."
