Overview
The complainant (Mr C) raised concerns about the loss of his clinical records and about the prescription of on-going medication for glaucoma by Lothian NHS Board (the Board)'s services delivered through the prison healthcare centre (the Healthcare Centre) at HMP Edinburgh (the Prison).
Specific complaint and conclusion
The complaint which has been investigated is that it was unreasonable that the Healthcare Centre lost Mr C's clinical records and did not prescribe his on-going medication (upheld).
Redress and recommendations
The Ombudsman recommends that the Board:
- (i) issue a full apology to Mr C for the loss of his clinical records, for the potential impact that his lack of medication may have had on his eyesight, and for the poor handling of his complaints;
- (ii) confirms that the healthcare centre now uses electronic clinical records which include lists of prescribed drugs for prisoners, and the date this was implemented;
- (iii) confirms their review of the process of transferring clinical records from establishment to establishment, which they referenced in a letter to Mr C;
- (iv) confirms the scope and findings of the NHS LEAN review of the pharmacy process, and if this is not yet complete, what the timescales for the review are; and
- (v) provides evidence that they have reviewed their complaints handling procedure in relation to complaints about their prison healthcare service, to ensure a proactive approach is taken and to ensure they receive complaints timeously.