NHS took two days to raise alarm about Kent meningitis outbreak, says report

East Kent hospitals NHS trust says officials could have acted sooner to notify UKHSA after first reported case

East Kent hospitals NHS trust missed an earlier opportunity to alert the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) over the meningitis outbreak in Kent, it has been reported.

According to the BBC, the Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother hospital in Margate first reported a case to the UKHSA on the afternoon of Friday 13 March.

The patient had arrived in hospital two days earlier, on Wednesday evening, but the trust waited until there was a formal diagnosis via a confirmed test before raising the alarm.

Dr Des Holden, the acting chief executive of East Kent hospitals NHS trust, told the BBC officials could have acted sooner. “We recognise there was an opportunity prior to diagnosis to notify UKHSA,” he said.