UHB patient recall
Paterson Inquiry · Report of the Independent Inquiry into the Issues raised by Paterson · Issued 4 February 2020 · Addressed to: University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust
Government responseDepartment of Health and Social Care: Accepted (Dec 2021)
DeliveryDHSC and NHS England say in progress (Feb 2026)DHSC states no delivery position (May 2024)Department of Health and Social Care says in progress (Mar 2021)
Recommendation, verbatim from the inquiry
●Inquiry recommendation
We recommend that the University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust board should check that all patients of Paterson have been recalled, and to communicate with any who have not been seen.
Paterson Inquiry, Report of the Independent Inquiry into the Issues raised by Paterson · 4 Feb 2020 Source PDF →
Published evidence summary
AI-generated evidence summary
In commentary from September 2024 published in February 2026, the Department of Health and Social Care and NHS England reported that University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust had contacted all known living patients of Ian Paterson by August 2020 and reviewed their care by June 2021 (DHSC and NHS England, Feb 2026). They noted that the trust continues to support relatives of deceased patients who make contact, offering detailed reviews and meetings to discuss findings (DHSC and NHS England, Feb 2026). In its February 2026 review, the Thirlwall Inquiry legal team found that the recommendation had been accepted in full and that the trust had carried out the patient contacts and care reviews (The Thirlwall Inquiry legal team, Feb 2026).
AI-generated summary of the record on this page, checked by a second model and automatic checks, 26 Sep 2026.
Government response
●Department of Health and Social Care · Accepted · 16 Dec 2021
Accept
By August 2020, University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust had contacted all known living patients of Ian Paterson.
By the end of June 2021, the trust had ensured that all known former patients had had their care reviewed and that any outstanding concerns were addressed in a way that was determined by the patient.
We accept this recommendation in full and we are pleased it has been fully implemented by the University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust (UHB) for all known living patients of Ian Paterson.
Extract from: Government response to the independent inquiry report into the issues raised by former surgeon Ian Paterson
Delivery
●DHSC and NHS England say in progress · 27 Feb 2026
By August 2020, University Hospitals Birmingham (UHB) had contacted all known living patients of Ian Paterson.
By the end June 2021, UHB had ensured that all known former patients had their care reviewed and that any outstanding concerns were addressed in a way that was determined by the patient. UHB continues to support any relatives of the deceased who make contact by providing a detailed review/report of the care their loved one received. Relatives are offered the chance to discuss the findings in a meeting (some have taken up this offer).
●DHSC states no delivery position · 15 May 2024
Action 5.1
By August 2020, UHB contacted all known living patients of Ian Paterson.
By end June 2021, UHB had ensured that all known former patients had their care reviewed and that any outstanding concerns were addressed in a way that was determined by the patient.
UHB continues to support any relatives of the deceased who make contact by providing a detailed review/report of the care their loved one received. Relatives are offered the chance to discuss the findings in a meeting (some have taken up this offer).
Action 5.2
Spire reports that the reviews of nearly all the patients contacted since the Paterson inquiry report have been completed. To ensure that this exercise has not omitted any patients of Paterson, Spire continues to interrogate the complex legacy IT systems that pre-dated Spire’s formation and takeover of Bupa hospitals. Spire will continue to contact any patients they identify as a result of this.
From: The Thirlwall Inquiry: Review of Implementation of Recommendations from Previous Inquiries into Healthcare Issues (version of 15 May 2024), The Department of Health and Social Care
●Department of Health and Social Care says in progress · 23 Mar 2021
University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust (UHB) contacted 4,394 patients between May and August 2020. This has given rise to 355 enquiries. Following receipt of each enquiry, the patient /relative was contacted directly by a member of a dedicated team to ensure that the Trust was responding in a way that was respectful and responsive to individual patient preferences. For patients who underwent a breast procedure, care was reviewed by a Consultant Breast Surgeon who was independent from the Trust. For patients who had a general procedure e.g. hernia repair or a varicose veins/other vascular procedure, care was reviewed by a consultant from UHB.
What other bodies have found
●Thirlwall Inquiry legal team · 27 Feb 2026
Action 5.1:
Accepted in full. By August 2020, University Hospitals Birmingham (UHB) NHS Foundation Trust had contacted all known living patients of Ian Paterson. By the end of June 2021, the trust had ensured that all known former patients had had their care reviewed and that any outstanding concerns were addressed in a way that was determined by the patient.
Earlier findings (1)
●Thirlwall Inquiry legal team · 15 May 2024
Action 5.1:
Accepted in full. By August 2020, University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust had contacted all known living patients of Ian Paterson. By the end of June 2021, the trust had ensured that all known former patients had had their care reviewed and that any outstanding concerns were addressed in a way that was determined by the patient.
Action 5.2: Accepted in full.
By December 2020, Spire had proactively contacted all known living patients of Ian Paterson to check that their care had been fully reviewed, and that they were getting any ongoing support and treatment that they needed. Spire had reviewed the care of over two-thirds of the patients concerned. As of the 12-month implementation update, Spire had reviewed nearly all the patients affected.
How this page is built
The recommendation and the government responses are verbatim from primary documents. Delivery statements and other bodies' findings are shown in their own words, each with its source. The summary is written by this site and labelled as such. The Index does not paraphrase sources or characterise intent; it records what has been published.