Group B Strep guidelines, patient information materials, and rates of neonatal infection

The request was successful.

Dear Ashford and St Peter's Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust,

The charity Group B Strep Support is doing some research into group B Strep prevention policies, information provision, and types of GBS testing done across the UK.

Please would you fill in the spreadsheet found at https://gbss.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2...

Please let me know if any questions are unclear. To assist with responding to this FOI request, we would expect questions 1-6 and 8-9 to need input from the Midwifery/Obstetrics & Gynaecology department, while questions 10-14 will likely need input from the Microbiology department.

Please provide answers to the spreadsheet linked above in an Excel format.

Yours faithfully,

Oliver Plumb

WANE, Sue (ASHFORD AND ST PETER'S HOSPITALS NHS FOUNDATION TRUST), Ashford and St Peter's Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust

Dear Oliver
Thank you for your recent request to Ashford and St. Peter’s Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust. We are dealing with it in accordance with the Freedom of Information Act 2000.

Please let us know if you have any further queries or information related to this request. Our reference number for the request is FOI 6769; please quote this on all correspondence.

Kind regards

FOI Administrator
Ashford & St Peter's Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust
[Ashford and St Peter's Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust request email]

________________________________________
From: Oliver Plumb <[FOI #582088 email]>
Sent: 10 June 2019 16:45
To: Asp.FOI (ASHFORD AND ST PETER'S HOSPITALS NHS FOUNDATION TRUST)
Subject: Freedom of Information request - Group B Strep guidelines, patient information materials, and rates of neonatal infection

Dear Ashford and St Peter&#39;s Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust,

The charity Group B Strep Support is doing some research into group B Strep prevention policies, information provision, and types of GBS testing done across the UK.

Please would you fill in the spreadsheet found at https://gbss.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2...

Please let me know if any questions are unclear. To assist with responding to this FOI request, we would expect questions 1-6 and 8-9 to need input from the Midwifery/Obstetrics & Gynaecology department, while questions 10-14 will likely need input from the Microbiology department.

Please provide answers to the spreadsheet linked above in an Excel format.

Yours faithfully,

Oliver Plumb

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Hi,

My FOI request (ref 6769) relating to group B Strep guidelines, patient information materials, and rates of neonatal infection has, by my reckoning, been delayed beyond the 20 working day timescale set out by the FOIA and ICO.

I would be very grateful if you could let me know on what date I will be receiving your reply please?

Yours sincerely,

Oliver Plumb

WANE, Sue (ASHFORD AND ST PETER'S HOSPITALS NHS FOUNDATION TRUST), Ashford and St Peter's Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust

Dear Oliver

Thank you for your email reminder. My colleagues had noted that the document you forwarded could not be opened. I was not told this until recently. Please can you send another version of this document so that we can complete it.

I apologise for not notifying you earlier.

I look forward to receiving your requested spread sheet.

Kind regards
Sue

FOI Administrator
Ashford & St Peter's Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust
[Ashford and St Peter&#39;s Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust request email]

________________________________________
From: Oliver Plumb <[FOI #582088 email]>
Sent: 10 July 2019 10:30
To: WANE, Sue (ASHFORD AND ST PETER'S HOSPITALS NHS FOUNDATION TRUST)
Subject: Re: Freedom of Information request - Group B Strep guidelines, patient information materials, and rates of neonatal infection

Hi,

My FOI request (ref 6769) relating to group B Strep guidelines, patient information materials, and rates of neonatal infection has, by my reckoning, been delayed beyond the 20 working day timescale set out by the FOIA and ICO.

I would be very grateful if you could let me know on what date I will be receiving your reply please?

Yours sincerely,

Oliver Plumb

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Oliver Plumb left an annotation ()

Sigh. Emailed the spreadsheet directly to their FOI address as requested.

Oliver Plumb left an annotation ()

Chased again outside WDTK

Dear Ashford and St Peter's Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust,

Please pass this on to the person who conducts Freedom of Information reviews.

I am writing to request an internal review of Ashford and St Peter's Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust's handling of my FOI request 'Group B Strep guidelines, patient information materials, and rates of neonatal infection'. (ref FOI 6769)

I made this request nearly six months ago, and while I understand some progress has been made towards collating the information, by law and under all circumstances, the Trust should have responded by now.

Please fulfil the FOI request as soon as possible. I look forward to hearing from you.

Yours faithfully,

Oliver Plumb

Asp.FOI (ASHFORD AND ST PETER'S HOSPITALS NHS FOUNDATION TRUST), Ashford and St Peter's Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust

5 Attachments

Dear Oliver

Please find attached the Trust's response to your Freedom of Information request FOI 6769.

Kind regards
Sue

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Dear Sue,

Thank you for your response. May I request the Trust answer question 11 in the spreadsheet? Namely "If the Trust/Board undertakes GBS testing for GBS carriage in women in late pregnancy, which detection method is used by the Microbiology laboratory?".

The Trust has replied "As per Q8 the Trust only offers culture-based GBS testing for GBS carriage in late pregnancy to women where GBS was detected in a previous pregnancy".

I appreciate this testing is done in limited circumstances, (and as per Q10's answer, is a vaginal swab) but simply on a logical basis the culture-based testing must have some sort of method for processing used by the Micro lab, whether this is simply direct culture onto non-selective media (i.e. a high vaginal swab), or a different sort of process.

Please would you clarify this with the Micro lab and respond ASAP?

Thank you.

Yours sincerely,

Oliver Plumb

Asp.FOI (ASHFORD AND ST PETER'S HOSPITALS NHS FOUNDATION TRUST), Ashford and St Peter's Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust

Dear Oliver

Please find the amended response below to question 11:

"If the Trust/Board undertakes GBS testing for GBS carriage in women in late pregnancy, which detection method is used by the Microbiology laboratory?". All Ashford & St Peter's Hospitals vaginal swabs get: Direct culture on non-selective, non-chromogenic media.

I hope this completes your queries.

Kind regards
Sue

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