Mid and South Essex selects SYNLAB for £900m pathology contract

Mid and South Essex NHS Foundation Trust has selected SYNLAB as its chosen pathology supplier, despite a cyber attack which caused major disruption to services in London.  

In June 2024, a ransomware attack was launched on Synnovis, a pathology partnership between SYNLAB, Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust and King’s College Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust.

The attack, which was declared a critical incident, lead to thousands of operations and appointments being cancelled across south east London and patient data being published on the dark web.

SYNLAB announced in a press release, published on 27 August 2024, that it has been selected to deliver a single, outsourced pathology service for mid and south Essex, including blood, tissue and other sample testing as well as the operation of phlebotomy clinics.

According to a contract notice, published in July 2023, the contract will run for 15 years with an estimated worth of £935 million.

The service will be used by GPs in the region, as well as clinicians at Southend, Basildon and Broomfield hospitals.

Dr Faisal Bin-Reza, clinical director of pathology at Mid and South Essex NHS FT, said: “The decision to choose a preferred supplier is good news for patients as it brings us a step closer to having a single pathology solution across mid and south Essex.

“Following a thorough and competitive procurement process, SYNLAB have demonstrated that they are best placed to give our patients and staff teams the high-quality pathology service they should expect.”

SYNLAB is expected to start the 15-year contract upon completion of the final stages of the procurement process. In the interim, the current solutions will remain in place via Pathology First, which operates in Basildon and Southend, and the trust’s in-house service in mid Essex.

Mark Dollar, chief executive of SYNLAB UK & Ireland, said: “We are delighted by this news and are looking forward to deepening our commitment to the mid and south Essex area.

“The challenging procurement process allowed us to demonstrate both our understanding of the trust’s local pressures and ambitions, and our broader expertise in NHS pathology partnerships across the UK.

“Added to this is SYNLAB’s absolute commitment to ensuring the services remain based in the area and to significant investments in technology and equipment.”

In the press release, SYNLAB said that it is committed to “investing heavily in facilities, technology and state-of-the-art laboratory equipment” to meet the future needs of the contract term, adding that the investment is focused on “enhancing service delivery and capabilities that benefit NHS patients, clinicians and all current and future colleagues”.

SYNLAB Italia is also believed to have been affected by a cyber attack, with SC Media reporting in April 2024 that laboratories, medical centres, and sampling points had been disrupted.