A woman from the Hunter region of Australia received the result of a positive bowel screening test five months after it was conducted, revealing a significant gap in communication within healthcare practices. The test, completed in October 2022, led to a diagnosis of stage two bowel cancer following a colonoscopy the week after she finally learned of her results.
The woman had initially undergone the bowel screening through her general practitioner, rather than the national program that sends testing kits to individuals over 50 every two years. In late February 2023, during a visit to her GP for an unrelated issue, she was informed, “you’ve got two positive results from your bowel test last year.” This delay left her shocked as she expected to be contacted directly regarding her results.
She recounted the conversation, stating that when she questioned why she hadn’t been informed sooner, her GP responded, “you didn’t ring and follow up the results.” The woman expressed her desire to remain anonymous but emphasized the importance of raising awareness about this issue to prevent others from experiencing similar distress. “Luckily, I had the best outcome,” she remarked. “My concern is that many people may not realize they need to follow up on their test results. There seems to be a huge gap in communication between some surgeries and their patients.”
In light of the incident, she suggested that some medical practices might be overwhelmed with their current workloads, leading to lapses in patient communication. This concern about healthcare pressures was echoed by Dr. Max Mollenkopf, a representative for the Royal Australian College of General Practitioners. He stated, “GPs and clinicians who order tests have a medical and legal responsibility to follow up on the results of tests.”
Dr. Mollenkopf emphasized that when a clinically significant result is obtained, it is the obligation of practitioners to inform patients. “You can’t tell a patient it’s on them,” he remarked, clarifying that even if patients are advised to follow up, medical professionals have a duty to ensure that all results are communicated effectively.
He explained that general practices usually have established protocols for managing test results, which involve attempts to contact patients multiple times if necessary. “Typically, this involves trying to contact the patient on three separate occasions. If that fails, a registered letter must be sent to inform them of a significant positive result,” Dr. Mollenkopf noted. He indicated that while positive results exist that may not be deemed significant, it is “extremely rare” for a significant result to go unaddressed.
Bowel screening tests are crucial as they detect small amounts of blood in stool samples, which can indicate the presence of bowel cancer. The woman’s case serves as a reminder of the vital importance of clear communication between healthcare providers and patients, especially regarding critical health information.
As the healthcare system continues to face challenges, ensuring effective communication remains paramount to patient safety and wellbeing.
