(ConservativeHub.com) – Hearing bad news from a doctor is never easy, especially when the medical provider doesn’t share it with tact and respect. So, when almost 8,000 patients of a UK medical practice received a text just before Christmas informing them they had a terminal illness, it’s no surprise most people were angry at the accidental greeting.
On December 23, Askern Medical Practice near Doncaster, England, apparently sent out a message to its patients that subscribe to texting updates that a doctor diagnosed them with “aggressive lung cancer with metastases” and asked them to fill out a DS1500, a form for people with terminal illnesses.
GP sends patients accidental diagnosis text instead of Merry Christmas messagehttps://t.co/Ld9aisJoMJ
— The Independent (@Independent) December 29, 2022
Less than an hour later, the practice followed up with its patients emphasizing it had sent the previous text in error. The office had intended to send a message wishing people a “very merry Christmas and a happy New Year,” according to a screenshot shared by the New York Post.
Multiple people who received this text were awaiting cancer results and understandably broke down upon reading the terrifying news by remote message. One person told The Telegraph that the mix-up was “unbelievable,” noting how he had been waiting for his lung cancer test results.
Askern Medical Practice posted on Facebook a few days after making the mistake, apologizing for the “distress” it caused the recipients. The poster also said the practice was working to ensure they wouldn’t make the same error in the future.
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