Health service reviews cost almost £188,000

BBC A man called George Oswald looks at the camera while standing in a hallway. He is wearing a green and black gingham shirt. A colourful mural is on the wall over his right shoulder.BBC
George Oswald says 20 independent investigations or reviews have been commissioned in five years

Independent investigations or reviews into health services have cost nearly £188,000 over five years, the government has revealed.

Guernsey's Health & Social Care (HSC) President George Oswald said 20 reviews had been either commissioned by or on behalf of the committee in Guernsey between 2021 and 2025.

He said the investigations, which included reviews into the pathology, maternity and ophthalmology departments, had cost £187,479 in total.

Oswald was responding to a question from Deputy Gavin St Pier, who wanted to know how many reviews had been commissioned and what the key findings were.

Organisations and people who have carried out the reviews included the Royal College of Surgeons of England, the Isle of Man's head of maternity, as well as consultancy firms.

Recommendations which came out of the reports over the five years included additional consultants and locum cover for the island's ear, nose and throat service and improving resilience in the pathology department.

Oswald's response added two other reports which were not directly commissioned for or on behalf of HSC but were relevant to its services were also conducted during the five-year period.

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