More than two years after the Hughes Report called for a two-stage redress scheme, its author, Professor Henrietta Hughes, England<\/a>\u2019s patient safety commissioner, has expressed disappointment over the “continued absence of visible and timely progress”. <\/p>\n Campaigners insist compensation “is not optional and is long overdue”. <\/p>\n Transvaginal mesh implants, used for pelvic organ prolapse and incontinence after childbirth between 1998 and 2020, have caused debilitating harm, leading in some cases to women<\/a> having their bladders or bowels removed. <\/p>\n The NHS restricted their use in 2018, now employing them only as a last resort.<\/p>\n Meanwhile, thousands of babies are thought to have been harmed by sodium valproate use during pregnancies<\/a> since the 1970s.<\/p>\n The drug, used to treat epilepsy and bipolar disorder<\/a>, is now known to cause birth defects and lifelong learning difficulties<\/a> and impacted an estimated 20,000 families.<\/p>\n The Hughes report had suggested victims should start to receive interim compensation payments from 2025.<\/p>\n It said an interim award of \u00a325,000 was the \u201cmedian amount patients said would be appropriate\u201d.<\/p>\n However, Prof Hughes said the Government has still not given a \u201csubstantive response\u201d to her recommendations.<\/p>\n She has written to No 10 for more information under the Medicines and Medical Devices Act, with a response deadline set for July 16.<\/p>\n Prof Hughes said: \u201cNearly two and a half years ago, the Hughes Report set out clear and urgent recommendations shaped by the experience of patients harmed by valproate and pelvic mesh and the systemic failures that followed.<\/p>\n \u201cIt provided compelling evidence of enduring gaps in recognition of harm, access to redress, and the adequacy of support available to affected patients.<\/p>\n \u201cThese are not new concerns, but as the Hughes Report highlighted, they continue to have significant consequences for those who have been harmed and indeed continue to do so.<\/p>\n \u201cThe recommendations in the Hughes Report are direct and actionable. They address fundamental issues in how the system responds to harm, including the need for timely acknowledgement, fair and accessible routes to compensation, and a more coordinated, compassionate response from government and public bodies.<\/p>\n \u201cThe continued absence of visible and timely progress against these recommendations risks perpetuating the very harms and inequities the Hughes Report identifies.<\/p>\n \u201cGiven the seriousness of these findings, and the continued impact on patients and their families, it is disappointing that the Government still hasn\u2019t provided a substantive response to the Hughes Report.<\/p>\n \u201cThere is a clear need for transparency and accountability regarding the Government\u2019s response. Understanding what action has been taken, and where progress has been made, is essential to driving improvement and restoring confidence with patients and the public.\u201d<\/p>\n Kath Sansom, founder of campaign group Sling the Mesh, said the \u201cevidence has been undeniable about the thousands of women living with devastating, irreversible injuries caused by treatments they trusted\u201d.<\/p>\n \u201cThese women did everything right. They trusted their doctors. And for that trust, they\u2019ve paid with their health, their jobs, their savings, and for some their marriages, but moreover their sense of self,\u201d she added.<\/p>\n \u201cThis is not good enough. They should not be forced to fight through the courts for justice over a piece of plastic mesh that has shattered their lives.<\/p>\n \u201cThe Government must act now. Full, fair and urgent financial compensation is not optional, it is long overdue.\u201d<\/p>\n Tom Shillito, health improvement and research manager at Epilepsy Action said is it \u201cextremely worrying\u201d that Prof Hughes is still pushing for answers.<\/p>\n \u201cFor the families affected, this is not about government process or policy discussions, it\u2019s about the reality of living with the consequences of harm every single day,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n \u201cMany parents and carers have spent years seeking recognition for the harm they experienced.<\/p>\n \u201cThey have shared some of the most difficult moments of their lives in the hope that lessons would be learned and change would follow.<\/p>\n \u201cFor some families, more than 40 years have passed since the harm occurred and they are now reaching an age where they are increasingly worried about who will be there to provide support when they no longer can.<\/p>\n \u201cWe support Professor Hughes\u2019s call for greater transparency.<\/p>\n \u201cFamilies deserve to know what progress has been made and what happens next.<\/p>\n \u201cAfter everything they have been through, they need the confidence that the recommendations made on their behalf will be acted upon and not simply left t to gather dust.\u201d<\/p>\n A Department of Health and Social Care spokesperson said: \u201cWe recognise the significant impact that sodium valproate and pelvic mesh have had on people and their families.<\/p>\n \u201cThis is a complex issue and our priority is to ensure any response is fair, balanced and sensitive to those affected.<\/p>\n \u201cWe are carefully considering the recommendations within the Hughes Report, in collaboration with relevant departments, and we aim to provide an update in due course.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Your support helps us to tell the story From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":511223,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[33],"tags":[163,85,46,482],"class_list":["post-511222","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-medication","tag-health","tag-il","tag-israel","tag-medication"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/511222","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=511222"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/511222\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/511223"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=511222"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=511222"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=511222"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}![\"Professor](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/FjX4CVwXgAMzfAd.jpeg\")
Professor Henrietta Hughes has expressed disappointment over the \u201ccontinued absence of visible and timely progress\u201d (Henrietta Hughes)<\/p>\n![\"Surgical](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/surgical-mesh.jpg\")
Surgical mesh is used to support weakened tissue and can be implanted to treat pelvic organ prolapse and incontinence (Getty\/iStock)<\/p>\n