NHS executives should be managed similarly to medical doctors, the pediatrician who first issued the warning about Lucy Letby has said, following concerns among clinicians about her After years of worry, she was “turned on”.
Dr Stephen Brearey, who was the first to conduct an emergency assessment of the nurse who was sentenced to life in prison on Monday for the nurse’s “brutal” murder, said her conduct and accountability senior officials in the health sector “absolutely” need to be adjusted. seven babies.
Breathey told BBC Radio 4’s Today: “All doctors and nurses have regulatory bodies that we have to respond to and we regularly see senior managers who don’t have clear accountability. about what they do in our trust and then move on to other trusts.” programme.
“You worry about their future actions and there doesn’t seem to be any system in place to hold them accountable.”
Calls were repeated on Tuesday by the hospital physicians association (HCSA), which is demanding the creation of an independent national statutory body outside the health service to protect those whistleblowers and those reporting safety concerns.
HCSA Chairman Dr Naru Narayanan said: “The unacceptable culture of cover-up by regulators that we still see in corners of the NHS is bad for patients and bad for doctors. “. “For too many doctors, the courageous, professional, and ethically correct step in reporting safety concerns will pay off in an effort to silence and compel individuals to report problems by managers focused on protecting their reputation.”
The union, which says it has dealt with “a series of cases affecting members” – with some reporting being at risk of suicide after issuing a safety warning – has also called for legislation. makes it a criminal offense to cause damage to protected disclosures.
Last week, the government announced an independent investigation into how the neonatal nurse was able to murder seven babies and attempt to kill six others. Pressure is growing from bereaved families and experts calling for the investigation to be stepped up to a statutory investigation where witnesses will be forced to give evidence.
On Tuesday, a senior cabinet minister acknowledged a statutory investigation was “under discussion”. “I spoke with the prime minister yesterday and he made it very clear that what we need to do is make sure families get answers, we also learn lessons and that is a process. The program is very transparent that everyone can support,” Gillian Keegan, education secretary, told Times Radio.
“What will happen next is that there will be a chairperson appointed, who will work with families to review the terms of reference, discuss the pros and cons of different types of investigations, then they will come to a conclusion.”
Following the unexplained deaths of seven infants in 2015, Breathey and other senior doctors asked an independent expert to conduct an evaluation. The report was shared with the medical director of the Countess of Chester hospital in 2016.
Concerns were addressed in 2016 – at the time Letby murdered five children – by a hospital administrator, who said there was “no evidence” against the nurse “other than coincidence”. of course”.
Breathey said the concerns raised by clinicians were “clarified”. An experience that is not uncommon in the NHS, he said. “You go to senior colleagues to present an issue and you feel confused and anxious because the issue is moving in such a way that you begin to realize that they are seeing you as a problem rather than a problem. concerns you have,” he said. .
Following Letby’s conviction, detectives began contacting many of the families believed to have been harmed by the nurse, including examining the records of more than 4,000 babies born at Countess Hospital. of Chester and Liverpool Women’s Hospital.
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