Doctors raise alarm about controversial private company's plans to overhaul cancer screening

Leading doctors say they have 'no confidence in Capita's ability to deliver' a new national screening system given its track record

The smear test, brought in during the 1980s, is offered to women as young as 25. (Rex)

GP representatives have raised concerns about the potential risk of delayed or missed cancer diagnosis from a new IT service being developed to administer smear testing for cervical cancer.

The British Medical Association’s GP Committee (GPC) has written to NHS England chief executive Simon Stevens to highlight the continued failures in key back-office functions from paying doctors to registering patients.

The problems all relate to a major contract for primary care “support services” that are essential to the day-to-day running of GP practices, dentists, opticians and pharmacists.

NHS England decided to contract for a single national supplier and awarded a contract to outsourcing giant Capita, starting in September 2015.

The contract involves running the service as well as implementing a major modernisation programme to replace the piecemeal systems and out-of-date IT used by its local-level predecessors.

The BMA letter says major problems have persisted since NHS England commissioned the service two years ago, changes the letter says are “putting patients at risk”.

But it warns there are more changes planned for next year.

GPC chair Dr Richard Vautrey writes: “We understand that new systems for both cervical screening and GP payments and pensions are due to go live in July of next year.

“We are very concerned that preparations are not sufficiently advanced at this stage of the projects to guarantee a seamless transfer to the new service.”

“We have no confidence in Capita’s ability to deliver this service,” the letter adds.

A spokesperson for Capita told The Independent that a final date had not been set, but did confirm that a July deadline has been discussed.

They added that the new service was being developed alongside NHS England, NHS Digital and Public Health England.

Capita’s support services website shows it is responsible for updating and operating key elements of the National Cervical Screening Programme.

The programme invites women aged 25 and 64 years for a routine smear test every three years, and health chiefs warned earlier this year that screening uptake had hit a 19-year low.

The new system will:

• Compile lists of eligible patients for GP practices;
• Send out invitations and follow–up letters to eligible patients;
• And, notify patients of test results once these are received from the lab.

The GPC’s deputy lead for clinical issues Dr William Beeby attended a risk assessment meeting on the changes earlier this year on behalf of the GPC. He told The Independent: “Their plan is to have the new system to ready to go out to user testing in March, but they’re going to roll it out in July.”

“The system we have now is old, and clunky, and long-overdue for updating. But, as far as I’m aware, no one has seen any early, working solution for how they’re going to deliver this, which is a great cause for concern. They should be doing a pilot now."

Dr Beeby is also part of the Advisory Committee on Cervical Screening, an appointment that comes from the Secretary of State for Health, he added: “As part of that committee, I would have concerns as well.”

Capita says the system will simplify screening, and improve the system with modern technology - chiefly a database for issuing invitations and follow ups.

A Capita spokesperson said: “This is a major transformation project to modernise a localised and unstandardised service, which inevitably has meant some challenges.

"This letter does not accurately reflect our involvement and responsibilities in PCSE, nor does it reflect our recent correspondence from NHS England who have recognised the improvements and significant progress being made across services in 2017, which has been demonstrated through improved and increasing customer satisfaction."

NHS England said: “We are holding Capita’s ‘feet to the fire’ on needed improvements”.