A boy of 15 is among 21 people being tested for HIV and hepatitis after unsterilised surgical tools and equipment were used on patients.
Ieuan Williams’ parents were only told about the blunder three weeks after he had braces fitted to his teeth at the Royal Gwent Hospital, in Newport, south Wales.
Karen and Lee Williams have accused the Aneurin Bevan University Health Board, which runs the hospital, of a ‘cover up’ after it emerged health chiefs only informed patients when a concerned whistle-blower contacted a local news website.
The couple told WalesOnline the delay was ‘disgusting’ and pointed out that patients could have unknowingly passed on potential infections to friends and relatives in that time.
‘They knew about this weeks ago and they tried to cover it up,’ Mr Williams, 47, who runs a double-glazing business, said.
His 46-year-old wife added: ‘If it wasn’t for the whistleblower, would we have ever known? They need to be more transparent with us. We need to know exactly how these errors happened.’
Ieuan is one of 21 patients affected by the mistake, which occurred over two days at the hospital, on February 25 and 26.
The health board insisted instruments had been disinfected but not put in the autoclave – a machine that sterilises medical tools using heat and steam – due to ‘human error’.
Ieuan Williams, 15, (pictured right) with his father, Lee, 47. The schoolboy is undergoing tests after unsterilised pliers were used to fit his braces three weeks ago
The blunder occurred because of ‘human error’ at the Royal Gwent Hospital, which is run by the Aneurin Bevan health Board, in South Wales
The hospital’s orthodontic department had fitted Ieuan’s braces on February 25 but, although bosses knew about the mistake on February 27, following routine checks, it wasn’t until Thursday March 19 that an official – dressed in medical scrubs and a surgical mask – delivered a letter to his parents asking them to get in touch urgently.
They were told that unsterilized instruments – pliers and a mirror – had been put into Ieuan’s mouth during the 20-minute procedure.
Although the hospital say the risk of the schoolboy contracting a blood-borne virus, such as HIV, Hepatitis B or Hepatitis C, is ‘very low’ he faces six months of tests before being given the all clear.
Ieuan, a pupil at Cwmbran High School, said: ‘I was quite scared at first.
‘I’m going to have to go back and forth to the hospital for six months. They keep saying how low the risk is but I want to know for sure.’
Local politicians have also condemned the health board’s handling of the error, with Laura Anne Jones, Reform MS for South Wales East, saying: ‘It’s scandalous that it’s taken three weeks for my constituents to be informed.’
A spokesman for Plaid Cymru also described the failings as ‘terrifying’.
‘Those responsible for such glaring failings on clinical safety should be brought to account – and the health board must show full transparency on how it is dealing with this,’ he said.
While Peter Fox, health spokesman for the Welsh Conservatives, said it was ‘a serious breach of care.’
‘An apology alone is not good enough,’ Mr Fox added. ‘We need a full investigation into why this appalling incident occurred.’
In a statement the health board claimed all patients affected were contacted on March 16, but a spokesman later admitted that, because they were unable to reach Mr or Mrs Williams, they were not informed until two days later.
Asked why the health board waited three weeks to tell patients, he told WalesOnline: ‘We really needed to be sure we had an accurate list of patients and that we were only contacting those impacted.
‘We needed to be clear about what steps were taken to ensure their health needs are responded to.’
The spokesman added: ‘We fully recognise the concern and distress this may cause, and we are truly sorry.
‘The wellbeing of our patients is our highest priority, and we are taking all necessary actions to understand how this happened and to prevent it from occurring again.
‘We also understand that others may feel concerned on hearing about this. We want to reassure all patients that this was a very limited incident, those affected have been contacted directly, and there is no wider cause for concern.’
