• Sweden edition
Science & Technology

Swedish men told to take smear tests

Published: 26 Apr 12 17:23 CET | Print version
Online: http://www.thelocal.se/40502/20120426/

The Stockholm county health authority (Hälso- och sjukvårdsförvaltningen) has been forced to send out an apology to 2,056 men in the capital and on the Baltic island of Gotland after erroneously calling them to come in for a gynaecological scan.

“We have been sending these letters for twenty years and we despatch 250,000 letters every year. This year, we just sent the same letter to some two thousand men as well by mistake,” Henrik Almkvist of the county health authority told The Local.

Exactly what went wrong is currently under analysis but the mistake was discovered when one of the data bases was updated.

Every year, the authority calls women between the ages of 23 to 60 to their local clinic for a smear test. This year, some men weren’t sorted from the register, as is usually the case, and the letters therefore went out to them too.

“We are conducting an in-depth analysis, making sure that it doesn’t happen again. In a few days we’ll know where in the chain of events it went wrong. It may just have been the human factor,” Almkvist said.

The 2,000 affected men will, however, receive a letter of apology with the instruction to disregard the summons.

This letter may even arrive in their post boxes before the previous one, as it was sent out with first class mail on Wednesday.

If anyone of the called men would turn up at at a clinic despite the letter of explanation, the midwives will be briefed and ready, according to Almkvist.

“It is improbable that they will turn up at a women’s clinic, but if they do, the midwives will have a chat to them and apologize for the inconvenience,” Almkvist told The Local.

Rebecca Martin
Follow Rebecca on Twitter here.

What do you think? Leave your comment below.

Your comments about this article:

The comments below have not been moderated in advance and are not produced by The Local unless clearly stated. Readers are responsible for the content of their own comments. Comments that breach our terms and conditions will be removed.

17:55 April 26, 2012 by Opinionfool
So not only Norwegians who cannot tell the difference between the sexes.
19:03 April 26, 2012 by BritVik
Well, they do go on about sexual equality :-)
22:29 April 26, 2012 by gpafledthis
They have been reading TL about football sweden and maybe they did "the right thing"
08:09 April 27, 2012 by muscle
So the international opinion is also becoming the national opinion :D hahahaha
09:12 April 27, 2012 by rybo1
I wonder if any of those who received the letter actually showed up for the smear?
11:00 April 27, 2012 by SimonDMontfort
Was the date on the letters the 1st of April...?
ADD YOUR COMMENT   (YOU MUST LOG IN OR REGISTER TO MAKE A COMMENT)
Today's headlines
Swedish addicts could get glass 'free zone'

Swedish addicts could get glass 'free zone'

Politicians in the small Swedish town of Falköping want to give alcoholics and drug users a glass-encased zone in the middle of a central square, saying it would lessen public disturbances and allow "the down and out" to socialize. READ () »

EU probes SAS airline over state aid

EU probes SAS airline over state aid

The European Commission opened an in-depth probe on Wednesday to see if state aid given to Scandinavian Airlines by Sweden and Denmark conformed to EU rules. READ () »

Fashion Fix
Jeepers creepers, your shoes hurt my peepers

Jeepers creepers, your shoes hurt my peepers

In The Local's new Fashion Fix column on Swedish trends, Englishwoman Victoria Hussey gets up close and personal with shoes - namely "brothel creepers" from WWII that have been making a steady return to Stockholm pavements. READ () »

Frozen raspberries could spread vomiting bug

Frozen raspberries could spread vomiting bug

Imported frozen raspberries should be boiled before eaten according to new advice from Sweden's National Food Agency, which warns that the berries may carry the novo virus that is more known for causing winter vomiting disease. READ () »

Body of lonely Swedish patient forgotten for days

Body of lonely Swedish patient forgotten for days

A deceased patient who had no relatives was left in a room for five days at the Örebro University Hospital before staff realized the body was still there. READ () »

Scab row as students disrupt bus strike

Scab row as students disrupt bus strike

Stockholm bus traffic was at a standstill Wednesday as drivers launched a major strike at midnight, but a group of Conservative youths disrupted the action by replacing a bus route between two of the city's major hospitals. READ () »

Tax bill for politician's ties to far-right site

Tax bill for politician's ties to far-right site

Sweden Democrat MP Kent Ekeroth has to pay tax for money sent to his bank account as donations to two far-right websites that he claims to have nothing to do with editorially. READ () »

The Local List
Top ten ways you know you've turned Swedish

Top ten ways you know you've turned Swedish

For some foreigners living in Sweden, a natural "inner Swede" can develop that often doesn't show its face until you're back home again. The Local's Patrick Reilly lists the top ten ways this inner-Swede can change your life. READ () »

More Science & Technology

 

Find a new job in Sweden now
19/06 GE Money Bank söker en senior riskanalytiker
GE Money Bank
Danderyd, STHM
19/06 Lighting Category Director
Schneider Electric
Malmö, SKÅ
19/06 Senior Electrical Engineer
European Spallation Source ESS AB
SKÅ
19/06 Senior Manager/Manager with Finance, Risk & Regulatory experience within Banking and Capital Markets
BearingPoint SE
Stockholm, STHM
19/06 Solution Architect to Teracom Group
Teracom Group
Stockholm, STHM
19/06 Staff Engineer
Poolia AB
Lund, SKÅ

ALL JOBS »


 

 

Highlights
Elodie Pradet/The Local Elodie Pradet WikiCommons Private/Scanpix Scanpix fastighetsbyrån.se Elodie Pradet/The Local File photo: AP File photo: Scanpix Private Göran Höglund/Flickr Finest.se Scanpix Ann Törnkvist Stefan Larsson Private DoToday Scanpix, C More The Local Finest.se Facebook The Local Scanpix Ann Törnkvist/The Local Henrik Montgomery/Scanpix CDC/Wikipedia (File) kristja/sxc.hu (File) Fastighetsbyrån Swedish expats use book club to survive London Finest.se Sergei Grits Silence/WikiCommons Oliver Gee Oliver Gee Scanpix veidekke/Flickr Eddie Gee David V. Hughes

 

Latest news from The Local in Germany

More news from Germany at thelocal.de

Latest news from The Local in France

More news from France at thelocal.fr

Latest news from The Local in Norway

More news from Norway at thelocal.no

Latest news from The Local in Switzerland

More news from Switzerland at thelocal.ch

Search News


Register

Register now for:
> Free use of noticeboard
> Special discounts
> Weekly news roundup
> Unlimited use of discuss

REGISTER FOR FREE »


Blog Update: Stripes News

13 June 22:03

This weeks results..week 24/25 »

"A weekend full of surprises and LFC football. Results look like this: Div 5 Men won 4-2, K1 lost 5-0, K2 won 2-1, Vets lost 3-2, R1 lost 4-1. Korpen Ladies play Monday night and on the 26th the Div5 Men close the first half season with the last match before the summer kicks in. /LFC " READ »

The Local's new Marketplace
Find products and services that are specifically focused on English speakers living in Sweden!
FULL DETAILS
Counseling in English
Individuals & Couples - Stockholm Beth Rogerson PhD - Clinical, Marriage & Family Therapist
Click or call 08-5580 1266 now
Trade binary options
Create an account with Banc De Binary, the world’s most reputable binary options firm, and start cashing in today! You can start by practicing with our free $50,000 demo account.
www.bbinary.com
Therapy in English
Expat counsellor & talk therapist offers counselling for stress, relationship issues, sexuality, culture adjustment & life coaching. Private & confidential. Stockholm or Skype. Contact me today! 08-559 22 636 or
CLICK HERE