Hospital to be base for screening

A technician checks a sample

WOMEN across Greater Manchester are set to benefit from a fast, high-quality cervical screening service based at the Royal Oldham Hospital.

The Pennine Acute Hospitals NHS Trust, which runs hospitals in Oldham, Rochdale, North Manchester and Bury, has been chosen by the Association of Greater Manchester Primary Care Trusts as the provider for cervical cytology services across all 10 primary care trusts in the region.

Experts at the Royal Oldham Hospital will now screen and report on all cervical smears performed within Greater Manchester.

The samples, which include smear tests from GP surgeries, hospital outpatient appointments or community clinics, will be transported to the specialist cytology laboratory.

These samples will then be screened using the latest technology and individual reports issued detailing the results and any follow-up action needed.

The service, which screens around 180,000 specimens annually, is currently provided from laboratories at five hospital sites.

National studies have shown, however, that larger units, such as the centre of excellence at the trust, are able to provide a higher quality service as they concentrate expertise and experience, and ensure the workload levels needed to maintain competency.

Len Fielding, pathology directorate manager at the trust, said: “The central pathology laboratory at the Royal Oldham Hospital is a state-of-the-art facility which was opened in 2008 and designed to accommodate increasing workloads across a range of disciplines.

“The key driver for us is that patients will get accurate results more quickly, secure in the knowledge that the individuals screening their specimens are experts in cervical cytology.”