NHS whistleblowers are demanding an independent inquiry into their treatment by hospital managers after a long-awaited report was declared a ‘whitewash’. In a scathing letter to the report’s author, they accused him of failing to hold any managers to account and leaving patients at risk of serious harm. The NHS’s ‘Freedom to Speak up Review’, which was published a fortnight ago, told how whistleblowers have faced a culture of ‘fear, bullying and ostracisation’ for daring to speak out. But whistleblowers whose careers have been ruined said still no action has been taken to address the concerns about patient safety that they have been making for years. Despite hearing awful reports about failures and cover ups over patients’ deaths, the report’s author Sir Robert Francis has ‘ignored’ their stories, they said.
NHS whistleblowers, however, have since confronted him, outlining their ‘serious concerns’ that his report has failed to address any of the specific concerns made by NHS staff about the alarming treatment of patients.
The letter has been signed by three high profile whistleblowers, including Dr David Drew, a top paediatrician who was sacked after claiming he had witnessed a cover up over a child’s death. It has also been signed by Sharmila Chowdhury, a senior radiography manager who spoke out about a £250,000 fraud at her Trust, and a third colleague who asked not to be named. Dated February 23, 2015, the letter states: ‘We have now had an opportunity to digest your report and have a number of serious concerns.
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NHS whistleblowers Dr David Drew (left) and Sharmila Chowdhury (right) have written to Sir Robert Francis demanding an independent inquiry into their treatment by hospital bosses, after they spoke out to raise concerns over patient safety
Filed under: Hospital, NHS, NHS Blunders, Whistleblowing, Freedom to speak up review, NHS, Whistleblowers
