Canty to get bowel screening
Canterbury will offer bowel screening to 60-74 year olds in the
2019-2020 year, but concerns about staffing for the increased workload remain.
It is the second change to the timeframe for the National Bowel Screening Programme (NBSP) rollout in Canterbury since the National government committed funding to it in Budget 2016.
Canterbury was to begin the programme last year, but the Canterbury District Health Board (CDHB) told the Ministry this was not achievable given the reduced facilities while Christchurch Hospital was redeveloped.
The revised date was after April
2018, but this week the Ministry of Health confirmed Canterbury would start the programme in the
2018-2019 year.
The DHB previously advised the Ministry April 2019 was a ‘‘realistic’’ time to start bowel cancer screening, CDHB planning and funding manager Carolyn Gullery said.
More than 82,000 people would be eligible for the programme with
141 cancers detected in the first two years of screening, according to CDHB estimates.
Canterbury Charity Hospital founder Phil Bagshaw said the new timeframe was ‘‘probably quite an optimistic assessment’’ given the CDHB was struggling to meet current needs for colonoscopies and other diagnostic testing.
He said there was an urgent need for the programme as it would save lives and reduce the costs of cancer care long term.
‘‘I think the sooner it starts the better because colon cancer is a major problem ... and it’s a tragedy that we’ve not been doing something about it for a very long time.’’
Screening participants were sent a faecal immunochemical test (FIT) kit and asked to return a stool sample. Those with a positive result were referred for further tests, including colonoscopies, to check for cancer.
NBSP director Stephanie Chapman said the delayed development of an IT system was the main reason for extending the rollout by a year, but it gave DHBs longer to prepare.
‘‘We acknowledge we are asking a lot of DHBs in the current climate where some have indicated they are facing resourcing challenges.’’
Bowel cancer advocates said the delay was ‘‘extremely disappointing’’ as population wide screening can detect cancer at an early stage, when it can be successfully treated.
Concerns have been raised about whether DHBs have sufficient staffing and facilities to deliver the screening service and diagnostic testing for people who return a positive result.
The National government committed $77.8m over four years for the NBSP and this was to cover all set up costs including IT, administration, regional processing centres, a national coordination centre and diagnostic testing.
DHBs were expected to fund treatment of cancers detected from their operational budgets.
Meeting wait time targets for colonoscopies was ‘‘critical for demonstrating readiness to deliver bowel screening’’, the document said.
CDHB chief executive David Meates said the service in Canterbury would depend on continued ‘‘adequate Ministry of Health funding allocation to meet its obligations’’.
Gullery said the CDHB was ‘‘currently experiencing higherthan-predicted demand for colonoscopies’’.