HOSPITAL bosses were dismayed to find they had not been awarded the contract for a diabetic screening service.

The hospital-run service will now be partly operated by a private provider, Health Intelligence.

In the future instead of diabetic patients getting their feet and eyes checked at the same time they will have to do so separately.

Andy Ennis, chief operating officer for the trust said: "It's disappointing because I think it's a step back. We had one integrated point where a diabetic person gets their eyes and feet checked at the same time.

"They tendered only for the eye service. We did lose it."

He added: "Our concern is for Bolton patients and the level of care they are going to get.

"The CCG will have to commission the foot service separately."

Bolton NHS Foundation Trust board met on Thursday and discussed the screening service, which is currently operated from Lever Chambers Centre for Health in the town centre.

The NHS put the eye screening service out to tender, something which had not been done since 2013.

Questions were raised by David Wakefield, chairman of the hospital trust board, about why their joint bid with Salford, Oldham and Wigan had not been successful.

He was told their bid had scored lower than the other one, though Mr Wakefield suggests "cost" had impacted the decision.

The board has decided to query the point with the NHS, but has received legal advice that a legal challenge to the decision will probably not succeed.

Dr Jackie Bene, chief executive of the trust, said the local Clinical Commissioning Group were "just as disappointed" as they were.

She added that the tender process was not the issue but the "specification" that was put out to tender, separating the eye and foot screenings.

The trust has clarified Bolton patients will still be able to get their feet checked in future, just separately to having their eyes checked.

Sarah Price, executive lead for population health and commissioning at Greater Manchester Health and Social Care Partnership, said: “We are legally required to tender for services and following a fair and transparent process the service has been awarded to Health Intelligence ­— who are specialists in the field and have significant experience in providing diabetic eye screening across the country.

“As always, we are committed to providing the best possible care to patients and Greater Manchester residents will continue to receive an excellent service.”

Health Intelligence already operates an eye screening service in a number of places in the UK including East Anglia and Dorset.