A UK hospital left its patients horrified and traumatized for about an hour just two days before Christmas when it sent patients a mass text telling them that they had been diagnosed with “aggressive lung cancer” and asking them to fill out a form meant for terminally ill patients.
Askern Medical Practice based in Doncaster sent out the mass text on December 23, warning recipients of a diagnosis made that showed they had “aggressive lung cancer with metastases,” which is stage four lung cancer that has spread from the lung to other parts of the body.
In the text, the hospital says that the doctor had requested the recipients to promptly fill out a form DS1500, which, per the UK health system, allows patients with terminal illnesses to claim benefits.
The practice quickly realized their grave mistake and, within one hour, sent a follow-up text expressing their sincere apologies for the text they had previously sent.
They told recipients that they had sent the message in error and that the message they meant to send should have been wishing them a “Merry Christmas and a happy new year.”
The Medical Center sent the message to all the people registered in the practice, about 8,000 patients. Their management has not yet commented on the mistake but someone is probably in big trouble.
Patient Sarah Hargreaves said that she was waiting for test results, and once she saw the message, she broke down in tears, only to find out later that it was an error.
Hargreaves said that she had just gotten a mole removed at the hospital and was waiting for the results from her biopsy. She had previously been to the medical center and got a positive pap smear test, so she was worried about getting bad news like the one sent to her via text.
The devastated woman called the medical practice several times, but she couldn’t get hold of anyone there.
Another patient who often uses the practice also received the heart-wrenching news. Carl Chegwin received the message, which he said left him very upset. He described the text as enough to break a person.
Chegwin said that he was perplexed by the message shared with him, saying that he questioned if it was some sick joke. The message surprised him because he had not gotten a test done in a while, and then the hospital told him he had cancer. It made him question himself and his lifestyle choices, especially his smoking habit, and wonder if the practice knew something he didn’t.
He called out the insensitivity of the text, saying that it was not right for them to tell people they had terminal cancer just before Christmas… in a text message (!)
Fifty-seven-year-old Chris Reed, waiting for lung cancer results, said his partner broke down when they read the message. But the doctors told them it was a mistake and his lung cancer results were negative.
Concerned for the patient who had the terminal disease, Chegwin asked what would happen if the person meant to receive the diagnosis was told it was sent by mistake and then had to receive the news again.
Think before you press SEND.