Manx Care
239 FOI requests | Full disclosure rate: 100.0%
The Freedom of Information requests to Manx Care reveal an authority grappling with the dual pressures of pandemic-era scrutiny and systemic data limitations. A dominant theme is the reliance on the 'information not held' exemption, particularly regarding mortality data. In over a dozen cases (e.g., 1812503, 1994741, 2210085), Manx Care consistently refused to provide death statistics or cause-of-death breakdowns, stating they do not hold death certificates and directing requesters to the General Registry. This creates a significant blind spot in public understanding of health outcomes, as the authority holds admission and treatment data but claims no access to the final mortality records. Similarly, requests regarding the scientific specifics of the pandemic response (virus isolation, PCR thresholds) were met with clarifications that Manx Care does not perform these advanced procedures, effectively outsourcing the scientific narrative to UK laboratories while refusing to generate new data on adverse events.
Key Cases
Case 1786213 — Highlights a significant transparency gap where Manx Care refused to provide advertising authorizations, invoices, and payments under a 'practical refusal' exemption, despite disclosing the budget. This suggests potential opacity in how public funds are authorized and spent on marketing.
Case 2175541 — Reveals the massive financial reliance on agency and bank workers, providing a clear picture of the cost of staffing shortages. The inability to differentiate between nurses and HCAs due to shared finance codes also exposes weaknesses in the authority's financial tracking systems.
Case 2371715 — Directly addresses patient safety and accountability by disclosing 'Duty of Candour' incidents. The revelation of 20 incidents, including one escalated to a formal complaint, provides concrete evidence of systemic failures and the authority's response to them.
Case 1873690 — A pivotal case in the pandemic narrative where Manx Care explicitly stated they do not perform virus isolation procedures. This clarifies the scope of their laboratory capabilities and counters claims that they are hiding evidence of virus isolation, while simultaneously admitting they do not hold the data requested by skeptics.
Case 2082778 — Clarifies the financial relationship with the UK government regarding vaccines. By confirming the Isle of Man paid nothing for the vaccines themselves (provided free by the UK), it shifts the focus of public spending inquiries to administration and distribution costs rather than procurement.
Related FOI Stories
The 'Not Held' Defense on Mortality and Death Data — #1812503, #1812501, #1941281, #1988313, #1994741
Virology, PCR Protocols, and Vaccine Skepticism — #1845993, #1861725, #1873689, #1873690, #1880753
Financial Transparency and Spending — #1786213, #1799406, #1820933, #1943113, #2007297
Hospital Performance, Waiting Lists, and Staffing — #1782317, #1821533, #1838029, #1931457, #1940485
Data Compilation and System Limitations — #1786213, #1812503, #1820933, #1915369, #1919333
| Date | Title | Outcome |
|---|---|---|
| 2023-03-23 | Diabetes Type 2 Statistics | All information sent |
| 2023-03-22 | Dental Complaints - Smile Dental Practice, Ramsey | All information sent |
| 2023-03-22 | Pharmacy inspections | All information sent |
| 2023-03-09 | ENT Waiting List | All information sent |
| 2023-03-07 | Ambulance call outs | All information sent |
| 2023-03-02 | Sativex also known as Nabiximol and Sativex Oromucosal | All information sent |
| 2023-02-10 | Number of Residents Diagnosed with multiple sclerosis | All information sent |
| 2023-02-09 | Disposal Covid-19 vaccine doses | All information sent |
| 2023-01-31 | Manx care prescription | All information sent |
| 2023-01-17 | Costing for Agency and bank work | All information sent |
| 2023-01-03 | Vascular dementia | All information sent |
| 2022-12-15 | Number of doctors and registered patients at GP surgeries | All information sent |
| 2022-12-06 | Adolescent Mental Health Medication | All information sent |
| 2022-12-06 | MRI Scans | All information sent |
| 2022-11-21 | UK Nurses | All information sent |
| 2022-11-08 | Baby deaths 2016-2022 Oct | All information sent |
| 2022-11-03 | Cardiology wait list | All information sent |
| 2022-10-25 | 2016-2022 liver conditions diagnosis | All information sent |
| 2022-10-21 | Lloyds St Paul's | All information sent |
| 2022-10-20 | Heart conditions diagnosed 2016-2022 | All information sent |
| 2022-10-11 | Patients receiving Ustekinumab | All information sent |
| 2022-10-04 | Social work for children with disabilities | All information sent |
| 2022-10-03 | Complaints report to 31st March 2022 | All information sent |
| 2022-09-27 | Updated Cost of Covid lateral flow testing | All information sent |
| The requester asked for updated figures on the cost and volume of free lateral flow tests issued to Isle of Man residents between July 2021 and August 2022. Manx Care disclosed the total number of tests distributed, unit purchase costs, delivery and distribution expenses, and the overall total cost to the taxpayer. | ||
| 2022-08-02 | Triage Nurse wait time | All information sent |
| The requester asked for the average wait time to see a Triage Nurse at Noble's Hospital A&E on January 11, 2022. Manx Care confirmed that the average wait time for that specific date was 30 minutes. | ||
| 2022-07-27 | Vedolizumab and Ustekinumab drugs | All information sent |
| A request was made to Manx Care for the specific number of patients receiving Vedolizumab and Ustekinumab drugs in the Isle of Man. The authority disclosed that between January and July 2022, 26 patients were associated with Ustekinumab and 6 patients received Vedolizumab treatment. | ||
| 2022-07-14 | Vedolizumab infusions | All information sent |
| A request was made to Manx Care for the number of patients receiving Vedolizumab infusions at Noble's Hospital. The authority disclosed that six patients received the treatment between January 1st and July 31st, 2022. | ||
| 2022-07-06 | cost of Covid Vaccines | All information sent |
| The requester asked for details on the contract, annual charges, and disposal statistics for UK-supplied Covid vaccines in the Isle of Man. Manx Care confirmed the vaccines are supplied free of charge under a memorandum of agreement between crown dependencies and disclosed that 327 vials were disposed of since February 2022 due to reduced demand. | ||
| 2022-06-27 | Triage Nurse wait time 11th January 2021 | All information sent |
| A request was made to Manx Care for the average wait time to see a Triage Nurse at Noble's Accident and Emergency Department on January 11, 2021. The authority confirmed that the average wait time for that specific date was 9 minutes. | ||
| 2022-06-24 | Available hospital beds | All information sent |
| The requester asked for hospital bed availability at Noble's Hospital for specific wards and units between May 20 and May 28, 2022. Manx Care responded by providing daily bed counts for the requested areas, noting that the data reflects the evening declaration at 20:00 rather than midnight. | ||
| 2022-06-09 | Still births | All information sent |
| A request was made to Manx Care for monthly stillbirth statistics from January 2017 to June 2022, and the authority provided the complete dataset as requested. | ||
| 2022-05-16 | Triage | All information sent |
| The requester asked for the average time to see a triage nurse in A&E in 2021 and the target times. Manx Care disclosed that the national target is 15 minutes, while the actual average in 2021 was 21 minutes, attributing the delay to COVID-19 protocols and the implementation of the Manchester Triage System. | ||
| 2022-05-04 | Manx Care considerations of provision of PrEP at GUM clinic | All information sent |
| The requester asked for an update on the review of PrEP provision policy in the Isle of Man following the conclusion of English and Welsh studies. Manx Care disclosed the original 2018 policy document stating that PrEP is not currently funded due to uncertainties regarding demand, cost, and real-world implementation, with a review pending the results of the IMPACT and PrEPared studies. | ||
| 2022-04-19 | Premature Births on the Isle of Man | All information sent |
| A request was made to Manx Care for statistics on premature births on the Isle of Man between 2016 and 2021, specifically for births before 37 weeks and before 32 weeks gestation. The authority responded by providing the complete dataset for all requested years and categories. | ||
| 2022-04-12 | Surgery catchment areas | All information sent |
| A request was made to Manx Care for details on the catchment areas of all GP surgeries on the Isle of Man, and the authority responded by providing specific geographic boundaries for each practice. | ||
| 2022-04-07 | Staff and Salaries | All information sent |
| The requester asked for the total number of permanent staff and salary spend at Manx Care, broken down by department. The authority responded with Full Time Equivalent (FTE) staff numbers and salary costs for January to March 2022, categorized by terms and conditions rather than specific job roles, with some groups anonymized to protect individual identities. | ||
| 2022-04-06 | Duty of Candour reports - Nobles Hospital | All information sent |
| A request was made for headline information regarding Duty of Candour incidents at Nobles Hospital since the regulations were introduced, including service areas, incident types, and follow-up actions. Manx Care disclosed that 20 incidents occurred, detailing their distribution across care groups and types, and confirmed that apologies were issued and one incident escalated to a formal complaint. | ||
| 2022-04-05 | Full term still births | All information sent |
| A request was made to Manx Care for the total number of full-term stillbirths in the Isle of Man over the last 15 years. The authority responded by providing a complete annual breakdown of stillbirths with a gestation of 37 weeks or more from 2007 to 2021. | ||
| 2022-03-24 | Surgery data 2 | All information sent |
| A request was made to Manx Care for prescription data broken down by surgery and pharmacy for the past three years. The authority disclosed all requested information, providing detailed statistics for 13 surgeries and 23 pharmacies covering the periods from 2018/19 to 2021/22. | ||
| 2022-03-22 | Surgery data | All information sent |
| The requester asked Manx Care for the number of full-time equivalent GPs and registered patients at each surgery on the Isle of Man. The authority responded by providing a complete list of FTE GP partners as of March 2022 and patient registration numbers as of January 2022 for all listed practices. | ||
| 2022-03-17 | Patient Group Direction | All information sent |
| The requester asked for a signed copy of the Patient Group Direction (PGD) for the rollout of COVID-19 vaccinations on the Isle of Man. Manx Care disclosed the full information, including the PGD for the AstraZeneca vaccine and a covering letter confirming its endorsement and legal status under Isle of Man legislation. | ||
| 2022-03-16 | Incidence of Myocarditis, Pericarditis and Cardiac Arrests on island | All information sent |
| A request was made for the number of confirmed diagnoses of myocarditis, pericarditis, and cardiac arrest on the Isle of Man between 2017 and 2021. Manx Care disclosed the total number of hospital admissions for these conditions combined but withheld a breakdown by specific condition to protect patient anonymity. | ||
| 2022-02-28 | Remdesivir | All information sent |
| The requester asked for the number of times Remdesivir was prescribed on the Isle of Man between 2018 and 2021. Manx Care disclosed the total quantity of Remdesivir issued by month and formulation, noting that patient-level data was unavailable. | ||
| 2022-02-28 | Elevated Heart Conditions and Strokes | All information sent |
| 2022-02-24 | Cost of Manx Care signage and branding | All information sent |
| The requester asked for a breakdown of costs incurred by Manx Care to replace DHSC logos and signage with new branding. Manx Care disclosed that the total spend was approximately £10,000, covering 106 signs across 11 sites, while noting that uniforms and stationery utilized existing stock to minimize costs. | ||
| 2022-02-23 | Patient Group Direction | All information sent |
| The requester asked for details on who signed the Patient Group Directions (PGDs) enabling the Isle of Man's COVID-19 vaccination rollout and when. Manx Care disclosed that they adopted UKHSA/NHS PGDs signed by the Medical Director, Director of Nursing, and Lead Pharmaceutical Advisor, and provided specific signing dates for four vaccines. | ||
| 2022-02-16 | Primary Care Responsible Officer Advisory Group | All information sent |
| A request was made to Manx Care for the composition, payment details, and budget of the Primary Care Responsible Officer Advisory Group. The authority disclosed the current committee members, confirmed that only the lay member receives attendance fees and mileage, and stated there is no designated budget for the group. | ||
| 2022-02-16 | Dental treatments provided | All information sent |
| The applicant requested statistics on NHS root canal treatments in the Isle of Man from 2016 to February 2022, broken down by year and practice, along with data on private referrals. Manx Care provided the treatment statistics but refused the request for private referral data as it is not held by the authority. | ||
| 2022-02-07 | Dentist waiting lists | All information sent |
| The request sought the number of people on the NHS dental waiting list and their wait times as of February 7, 2022. Manx Care disclosed that 2,336 people were on the list with an average wait of 141 days and provided a detailed monthly breakdown of list growth and allocations since April 2019. | ||
| 2022-02-02 | Nobles Admissions past 5 years | All information sent |
| A request was made for a list of in-patient admissions to Nobles Hospital over the past five years, broken down by category and month. Manx Care fulfilled the request by providing an attached Excel spreadsheet containing the data. | ||