Royal Victoria Hospital: Tuberculosis screening offered

Former patients who may have come into contact with someone diagnosed with tuberculosis are being offered precautionary screening by the Belfast Health Trust.

In a letter seen by BBC News NI, those affected have been told the contact happened at ward 2F in the Royal Victoria Hospital in March 2019.

Tuberculosis can affect the lungs as well as other organs.

The infection is usually treated through antibiotics.

According to the health trust, the risk of having the infection is very low but those contacted are being invited to attend screening as a precaution.

The letter also explained that while the infection was uncommon in Northern Ireland, a small number of cases were diagnosed every year.

A woman who received a letter told BBC News NI it came as a shock and that she was very concerned as it went back to 2019.

The woman, who did not want to be identified, said she lived with two people who were asthmatic and vulnerable.

"It is impossible for me to trace my footsteps over the past three years and I will probably worry until I am told that the X-ray is clear," she said.

"What I don't understand is why it took so long for them to contact those who are possibly affected."

'Low risk'

Belfast Health Trust said those identified were a "low risk close contact of a patient who has since tested positive for tuberculosis when they were an inpatient".

It said that "the risk to all patients is very low" as tuberculosis was not as easily transmitted as other infections and the patients identified were exposed for fewer than eight hours.

It added: "All patients contacted have been offered a screening appointment as a precaution."

Patients may have come into contact with the infection at a Royal Victoria Hospital ward

The trust did not answer a number of questions asked by BBC News NI, including how many people had been sent a letter and if it affected people across Northern Ireland.

The statement said those identified were a "low risk close contact of a patient who has since tested positive for tuberculosis when they were an inpatient".

Typical symptoms of tuberculosis are:

• Fever and night sweats

• Persistent cough

• Unexplained weight loss

• Blood in phlegm or spit

Dedicated clinics will hold screenings for those affected starting on Monday 27 June at Belfast City Hospital.