County Durham & Darlington NHS Foundation Trust (CDDFT) has apologised to patients and their families who have been affected by failings in the Breast Surgery Service.
The apology comes as the Trust publishes and responds to an independent external review into leadership and governance failings.  Alongside this, the new Chief Executive and new Interim Chair have set out their determination and commitment to take action with a comprehensive programme of reform and improvement.
The review, commissioned by the Trust and conducted by governance specialist Mary Aubrey, identified serious and long-standing weaknesses in clinical oversight, leadership action and accountability, and governance processes. This enabled poor clinical practice to persist. The Trust has accepted the findings of the review and, in addition to having implemented improvements to the Breast Service so that patients can be confident they will receive care in line with national standards, is outlining further plans to deliver organisation-wide change.
The Trust has acknowledged the failings and is focused on overhauling its governance and leadership, delivering meaningful reform and restoring public confidence.
The Trust has already begun implementing a comprehensive action plan aligned with the review’s recommendations. Immediate priorities include:
• Strengthening leadership capacity and capability and improving
corporate governance
• Improving clinical governance and how we listen to the voices of our
patients experience and communication
• Creating a safe and open culture where the voices of our staff are
heard, where we have professional curiosity and take action
promptly
• Improving how we manage contracts for services
• Improving medical leadership and management as well as the support to Consultants through job planning, appraisal and revalidation
CDDFT will publish progress updates through its Board and website, ensuring full transparency as reforms are delivered. This began with an open Board meeting on Wednesday 26th November. The Trust is also working closely with system partners, including NHS England, the Care Quality Commission, and the North East and North Cumbria Integrated Care Board, to provide independent assurance of progress.
A dedicated call line and email address are in place for any patients who have concerns about the care they have received through the breast surgery service:  0191 3332126, or email the team at:
cddft.breastservices@nhs.net
The Trust recognises that rebuilding confidence and embedding a change in culture will take time, but its leadership team has made it clear that this marks a turning point.
Steve added: “This is about ensuring that what happened here can never happen again and that it brings a cultural reset for the Trust.  We will be open and transparent, we will listen, and, fundamentally, we will deliver the changes needed to make our services safer and stronger for the future for our communities.”