Spire patient recall
Paterson Inquiry · Report of the Independent Inquiry into the Issues raised by Paterson · Issued 4 February 2020 · Addressed to: Spire Healthcare
Source — verbatim from the inquiry
●Inquiry recommendation
We recommend that Spire should check that all patients of Ian Paterson have been recalled, and to communicate with any who have not been seen, and that they should check that they have been given an ongoing treatment plan in the same way that has been provided for patients in the NHS.
Paterson Inquiry, Report of the Independent Inquiry into the Issues raised by Paterson · 4 Feb 2020 Source PDF →
Published evidence summary
Publicly available evidence relating to this recommendation:
- Spire Healthcare reported in April 2025 that it had completed more than three quarters of its reviews for deceased patients (Implementation update to Thirlwall Inquiry, DHSC/NHS England, April 2025).
- The government stated in December 2021 that Spire had provided ongoing treatment plans and support consistent with the NHS approach (Government Response to the Report of the Independent Inquiry into the Issues raised by Ian Paterson, DHSC, December 2021).
Sources
How was this evidence gathered?
Response — verbatim from government
●Spire Healthcare
Accepted and implemented. Spire Healthcare has undertaken comprehensive patient recall. All identifiable former patients of Paterson have been contacted and offered clinical review. Spire has provided ongoing treatment plans and support to affected patients, consistent with NHS approach. (Source: Government Response, December 2021)
Spire Healthcare · 16 Dec 2021
Evidence trail — what's actually happened since
- 1 Apr 2025 DHSC and NHS England implementation update provided to the Thirlwall Inquiry (April 2025). This is the government's own account of progress, submitted to the inquiry. Reviewed extent of implementation: Implemented – Ongoing. Spire Healthcare accepted this recommendation in full and contacted all known living patients of Ian Paterson. This followed exhaustive efforts to identify all living patients, some of whom were treated many decades ago. Spire Healthcare has now completed a comprehensive review of all these patients; however, its helpline remains open to support any patient who feels they may have been missed or who would like a further review of the treatment they received. It is now reviewing the care provided by Paterson to patients who are now deceased and has completed more than three quarters of its reviews of these patients. Spire Healthcare has sought to conduct this recall in a sensitive and compassionate way. It has provided support to those patients going through the review process, and where appropriate, has offered counselling. In addition, it has engaged with patient support groups throughout the process. 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. Source →
Each entry above links to a primary source — gov.uk written statement, consultation response document, or inspection report. The Index does not characterise government intent; it tracks what has been published.
How this page is built
Source and Response are verbatim from primary documents. The Evidence trail records published activity since — written statements, consultation outcomes, inspection findings, parliamentary references. The Index does not paraphrase or characterise intent; it tracks what has been published. Where the evidence is the absence of action (a missed deadline, a slipped timetable), that absence is documented from primary sources rather than inferred.
This recommendation's data is verified periodically against primary sources. The Index is monitored for staleness weekly.