Kath Sansom, of March, who founded Sling The Mesh, spoke at the HSJ Patient Safety Congress - the UK’s leading forum for driving improvements in care. The event is into its 18th year and was attended by more than 800 clinicians, policymakers, government officials and patient representatives. Speaking to a packed audience, she drew attention to the complications of surgical mesh used to strengthen weak tissue in operations to fix hernias, prolapse, bladder leaks and in some reconstructions after mastectomy for breast cancer patients. She said: “There’s thousands in the Facebook support group and behind these figures are real people whose lives have been devastated by preventable harm. “We need better systems to spot trends of harm so any drug, medical device or treatment causing problems can be picked up early and suspended if needed.