AQW 47799/22-27
Miss Nuala McAllister
Alliance Party
North Belfast
Tabled Date: 03/06/2026
Answered On Date: 22/06/2026
Priority Written: No
Question:
To ask the Minister of Health to detail a breakdown, by Health and Social Care Trust, of the 12,000 patient referral letters which went missing from the encompass system.
Answer:
The correspondence in question refers to referral rejection letters issued to the referring GP or clinician following triage, where a decision is taken not to proceed with the referral and the reason for that decision is provided. The figure of 12,000 referenced publicly reflects early indicative estimates prior to detailed validation. A subsequent regional review undertaken by Health and Social Care Trusts has confirmed that 7,032 referrals were affected, where a rejection letter was not generated at the point of triage. The breakdown by Health and Social Care Trust is set out below. Organisation | Total | HSC BELFAST TRUST | 1,573 | HSC NORTHERN TRUST | 1,715 | HSC SOUTH EASTERN TRUST | 961 | HSC SOUTHERN TRUST | 1,331 | HSC WESTERN TRUST | 1,452 | Grand Total | 7,032 |
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