Decision Report 201400455

Summary

Mrs C went to her GP twice after noticing a lump in her abdomen. She complained to us that he did not perform appropriate examinations to establish the cause of her symptoms and did not offer her a NHS referral.

Mrs C said that the doctor was dismissive of her concerns about the lump, and she asked him to give her a private referral for specialist opinion. This resulted in a diagnosis of ovarian cancer. She said that there had been a delay in diagnosis and that, had she not insisted on a private referral, there would have been further delay. The GP said that he had carried out appropriate examinations and that it was his intention to make a NHS referral but Mrs C had insisted on a private referral.

We took independent advice on the complaints from one of our medical advisers, who is a GP. As our investigation found that the GP had carried out appropriate clinical assessments and made an appropriate referral, we did not uphold the complaint. We did not make any recommendations, although we did point out to the GP that if a similar situation arises in future he should record why a private referral has been requested and agreed.