Patient given stool sample kit by GP that had already been used

A stool sample kit should absolutely never be 'second hand'.

A GP patient was appalled when he discovered the stool sample kit he had been provided with had already been used.

The man was hoping to get answers about a condition which had blighted him for four months but came home from the doctors with more than he had bargained for.

When he got the do-it-yourself kit back to his house and opened it he soon realised it was far from brand new.

The 32-year-old – who wished to remain anonymous – was horrified to find there were traces of its previous user’s faeces still visible on the kit.

Not only that, confidential medical data was written on its label, a potentially serious breach.

South Reading and Shinfield Group Medical Practice has issued an apology and called for an urgent review into how the tests are handled.

The patient said: ‘I was horrified when I first saw it because I thought something wasn’t quite right and then I saw someone’s name on it and instantly put it away.

‘So it’s been sat in a cupboard for a month and I’ve brought it into my home.

‘Literally, someone’s poo is in my house.

‘It’s pretty gross and it’s a data breach as well, as it had all their medical information on the label.’

He was given the kit in mid-November but notes on it suggest it had been used as far back as early October.

The pack was one of two he was given by a person working behind the counter at the surgery. The other was mercifully spick and span.

A spokesperson for the surgery said: ‘We have apologised to the patients concerned and ensured that the issue was dealt with effectively and promptly.

‘We are reviewing the way we manage stool sample tests to maintain our high level of patient care and confidentiality.’

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