A failing IT system has prevented ‘thousands’ of NHS patients from receiving appointment letters for vital jabs, including a chicken pox vaccine for youngsters, a whistleblower has claimed
An NHS computer glitch has prevented “thousands” of children from receiving vaccinations, including a vital new chicken pox jab.
A whistleblower claimed a failing IT system meant “thousands of letters for child vaccinations and screens weren’t sent” and that “the implementation of the new 18 month appointment for chicken pox was completely botched.” News of the glitch, affecting youngsters in Scotland, came after NHS National Services Scotland (NSS) admitted delays to letters this week, as well as sending out inaccurate information about routine childhood vaccination appointments.
The source said: “To date, only a handful of children have been offered the new appointment due to a total failure of the 35 year old IT system and the update that was completed… Health boards have been unable to appoint children for appointments, leaving clinics empty.
“This can lead to children coming to additional harm, as we’re aware chicken pox is easy to catch. So vaccine preventable disease is continuing to spread.”
The source claimed the old IT system is due to be replaced, but that the move is “overdue and overspent”, the Daily Record reports.
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