Message from NHS England.
As you will be aware, there are widespread breaches of the turnaround time target for cervical screening, which requires that women receive their results within 14 days of the sample being taken.
This target is referenced in the national invitation letters and leaflets, which cannot be altered at this time.
Nationally, many areas are struggling to meet this target. In April less than 50% of women received their result within 14 days and this is anticipated to be even lower for May, due to the effects of the Ransom-ware attack. Although we are attempting to put remedial plans in place to increase laboratory capacity, we do not anticipate full resolution of the issue.
Therefore, we ask that sample takers communicate this to women attending for screening in your area. Ideally, they should inform women, at the time of taking the sample, that there may be a delay in receiving the results. This message will need to be tailored to local circumstances, and may need to be updated as the situation changes.
If there are any questions or queries with this, please do not hesitate to contact your local Screening and Immunisation Team within NHS England: maggie.luck@nhs.net
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