Apology from NHS Grampian over cancer death patient treatment delays

NHS Grampian has apologised for the standard of care offered to a patient who died of cancer.

After patient A's death a relative complained about issues including that a planned CT scan had not been requested.

The Scottish Public Services Ombudsman (SPSO) said there had been "unreasonable delay" in the case.

NHS Grampian said patient A's care in Aberdeen was not what it should have been, and apologised.

The complaint related to the care provided at Aberdeen Royal Infirmary and the city's Woodend Hospital after the patient was diagnosed with a cancer which had spread to other parts of the body.

• Cancer diagnosis was three years late

The SPSO asked the health board to apologise to the relative for the unreasonable delay in performing an urgent CT scan, the failure to ensure that patient A was adequately informed about the plans for the CT scan, and the lack of referral to oncology.

It told NHS Grampian to ensure care plans are followed up, with the patient or representative kept informed.

The health board said in a statement: "We accept the decision of the Ombudsman in this case and all recommendations have been completed.

"The care we provided to A was not of the standard we would wish. We wrote directly to C (relative) to apologise for this and would like to take this opportunity to apologise once again publicly."