whistleblower | STRENGTH IN NUMBERS

14/10/2016 • 8:35 am 0

NHS whistleblower ‘facing sack’ goes on hunger strike

An NHS worker who says she faces being fired for whistleblowing is going on hunger strike outside the Department of Health.

Jade Taylor, 46, has set up camp in Whitehall with placards, bags, and bottles of water. She has vowed to stay as long as she could – until she gets a meeting with Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt. Taylor, who leads a community team in a mental health trust, started speaking up about her concerns over patient and staff safety after the mistreatment of her parents at Mid Staffordshire NHS Foundation Trust.

Their deaths prompted her to complain about a ‘plethora of concerns’ in her own trust, Berkshire Healthcare NHS Foundation, including allegations of bullying and the mistreatment of whistleblowers.

She started her hunger strike at 7pm on Monday before taking up her post in Whitehall yesterday.

Click on the link to read more

NHS whistleblower ‘facing sack’ goes on hunger strike

Senior mental health nurse Jade Taylor outside the Department for Health in London where she is on hunger strike, October 11 2016. See SWNS story SWWHISTLE: An NHS manager who says she faces the sack today (Wed) for whistleblowing has gone on hunger strike outside the Department of Health. Jade Taylor, a senior mental health nurse says she will be sacked today (Weds) for raising concerns about patient and staff safety is on hunger strike outside the Department of Health. Senior mental health nurse Jade Taylor, 46, claims her parents were mistreated during the scandal at Mid Staffordshire NHS Foundation Trust.

Jade Taylor is camping outside the Department of Health (Picture: SWNS)

Filed under: Whistleblowing, whistleblower

20/01/2016 • 8:03 am 0

Wolverhampton’s New Cross Hospital cancer scandal: Cleared after four-year fight! Victory for NHS whistle-blower

The whistle-blower who lifted the lid on the chemotherapy cancer scandal at the Royal Wolverhampton NHS Trust has been cleared of misconduct after a four-year battle to clear his name, the Express & Star can reveal.

In October Professor David Ferry revealed that at least 55 patients were given extra chemotherapy treatment they did not need between 2005 and 2010. Following his revelations Professor Ferry – who has asked the Express & Star to name him in this article – had his integrity called into question by trust bosses. They issued a press release stating he was under investigation for ‘serious misconduct’, referenced his alleged ‘poor practice’ and accused him of ‘pursuing his own agenda’.

The General Medical Council (GMC) placed restrictions on Prof Ferry in March 2015 in light of concerns regarding his clinical practice and alleged resistance to ‘working effectively’ with colleagues at New Cross Hospital. Now the council’s Medical Practitioners Tribunal Service (MPTS) has removed the conditions and cleared him to return to practice should he wish to do so.

Click on the link to read more

http://www.expressandstar.com/news/2016/01/18/cleared-after-four-year-fight-victory-for-nhs-whistle-blower/

Professor David Ferry, who has been cleared of misconduct after a four-year battle

Filed under: Whistleblowing, Cleared, whistleblower

29/12/2015 • 9:47 am 0

NHS whistleblower helpline ‘useless’ campaigner Rab Wilson claims

A CONFIDENTIAL phone line set up to allow NHS workers to report concerns about patient safety and bullying has been branded “useless” by one of the country’s most high-profile whistleblowers.

Rab Wilson, a nurse who uncovered a catalogue of failings at NHS Ayrshire and Arran, said he had suggested the measure to Nicola Sturgeon but the initiative had “failed utterly” as it had proved toothless in holding health boards to account. The Scottish Government hit back at the claims, saying its policies allowing health workers to raise concerns were already “robust” and would be strengthened further with the appointment of an independent national whistleblowing officer.

Mr Wilson spoke out after Dr Jane Hamilton, a consultant psychiatrist, revealed that she was retiring after believing that she had become known as a “troublemaker” within the Scottish NHS. She warned bosses that lives were being put at risk at a specialist Mother and Baby Unit at St John’s Hospital in Livingston before going public with her fears. Dr Hamilton said that she had been unable to find work north of the Border and that a weekly commute to Yorkshire where she worked for the NHS in England had proved too demanding.

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http://www.heraldscotland.com/news/homenews/14170660.NHS_whistleblower_helpline__useless___campaigner_claims/

Rab Wilson, outside the Scottish Parliament

Filed under: Whistleblowing, helpline, NHS, useless, whistleblower

21/11/2015 • 9:25 pm 0

NHS whistleblower fears patients will die as he leaks image of suffering patients

Ambulance worker Martin Jackson turned whistleblower to hand over a shocking picture of seriously ill people queuing on stretchers to be checked in at A&E

A NHS whistleblower fears patients will DIE in corridors due to the crisis in hospital. The warning from ambulance worker Martin Jackson came as he handed over this shocking picture of seriously ill patients on stretchers queuing to be checked in at A&E.

He said they waited for two hours. The hospital denied it was that long. The photo was taken at Northumbria Specialist Emergency Care Hospital in Cramlington which opened in June and has been described as a “vision for the NHS”. But Mr Jackson, 51, said: “It’s only a matter of time before a patient dies on a stretcher waiting to be seen, the Sunday People reports.

He said centralising A&E care for serious illness and injury in such “super” hospitals at the expense of other NHS units was not good for patient care. He believed it meant longer travel time for patients and waits for ambulance crews.

Click on the link to read more

http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/nhs-whistleblower-fears-patients-die-6875670

Worries: Martin Jackson fears a patient will die on a stretcher

Filed under: A&E, Whistleblowing, A&E, NHS, suffering patients, whistleblower

16/10/2015 • 7:00 am 0

Whistleblower outed by hospital bosses in cancer drugs cover-up: Health chiefs try to discredit and reveal name of professor

Professor revealed patients were needlessly put through chemotherapy
Had wished to remain anonymous after disclosing ‘macabre experiment’
Royal Wolverhampton NHS Trust named whistleblower in a statement
Tried to discredit him by stating restrictions had been put on his ability to practice

An NHS whistleblower who revealed patients were needlessly put through the agony of chemotherapy has been outed by his bosses. The professor wished to remain anonymous after disclosing the ‘macabre experiment’ carried out by colleagues. But health chiefs tried to discredit him yesterday in a statement described as ‘obscene victimisation’.

The whistleblower had previously been gagged from warning the public about his concerns by bosses at the Royal Wolverhampton NHS Trust. He was also subjected to racist abuse, which became the focus of a criminal investigation. Last night, MPs and campaigners demanded intervention from the Health Secretary. Former colleagues of the whistleblower also contacted the Mail to speak out about his ‘horrendous treatment’.

One said: ‘The whistleblower was one of the most valued members of staff. There has been a witchhunt to silence him. Instead of tarnishing his name they should apologise to the patients.’ The Daily Mail yesterday revealed how 55 patients aged between 49 and 83 were wrongly exposed to chemotherapy by two doctors between 2005 and 2009. The chemotherapy, which was administered against guidelines, was of no medical use to the patients because their type of cancer required different treatment. But it exposed them to horrific and unnecessary side effects including higher risk of fatal infections and lost fertility.

Click on the link to read more

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3273193/Whistleblower-outed-hospital-bosses-cancer-drugs-cover-Health-chiefs-try-discredit-reveal-professor.html

The chemotherapy was administered in defiance of strict guidelines by oncologists Dr Margaret King, and Dr Mark Churn, to patients with colorectal cancer

Filed under: Whistleblowing, Cancer, NHS, whistleblower

29/09/2015 • 6:47 am 0

The tragic cost of NHS out-of-hours hotline’s descent into meltdown: Two babies died after parents were given wrong advice – as investigation finds ONE nurse on duty for 2 million people

Investigation reveals NHS out-of-hours hotline is in meltdown in part of UK
Staff shortages mean those with just three weeks training are overwhelmed
Hotline has missed answering targets for seven months, affecting 500,000
Two babies died after staff failed to recommend treatment to save them
Up to 75 per cent of calls can go unanswered at busy times, research finds

The NHS out-of-hours hotline is in meltdown in parts of Britain, a Daily Mail investigation reveals today. Chronic staff shortages mean call centre staff with just three weeks of training are being overwhelmed. Lacking medical qualifications, they must follow on-screen computer prompts that often lead to a referral to a nurse. But so few nurses are on standby that at times there is only one to serve as many as 2.3million people.

The hotline, which replaced NHS Direct and deals with urgent cases, has missed its call-answering targets for the past seven months. Half a million patients were unable to speak to anyone at all during this time.

Evidence obtained by the Mail, including shocking testimony from an NHS whistleblower, reveals that:

A tick-box computer culture means call centre workers can miss vital symptoms;
Two babies died after staff failed to recommend treatment that could have saved them;
Up to 75 per cent of calls can go unanswered at busy times, with one case of an 11-hour wait for a call back;
Nurses have been told to prioritise routine calls over advising on serious cases so they can hit targets;
111 staff believe the service is ‘completely unsafe’.

Click on the link to read more and watch the video

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3252724/The-tragic-cost-NHS-hours-hotline-s-descent-meltdown-Two-babies-died-parents-given-wrong-advice-investigation-finds-ONE-nurse-duty-2-million-people.html

Former NHS 111 worker and whistleblower ‪Irsah Tahir, 21 has waived her anonymity to raise her grave concerns

Filed under: NHS, Whistleblowing, meltdown, NHS 111, whistleblower

26/09/2015 • 2:48 pm 0

Joanna Gosling interviews Sharmila Chowdhury (NHS Whistleblower) on the BBC Victoria Derbyshire Show, 24 Sept 2015

http://sharmilachowdhury.com/

Filed under: NHS, Whistleblowing, Sharmila Chowdhury, whistleblower

14/08/2015 • 4:03 pm 0

Detainee’s mental health in Yarl’s Wood was not treated seriously: The whistleblower’s story by Noel Finn

‘I compiled a report detailing the poor clinical practices but after I handed this in, my working relationship with the management at Yarl’s Wood deteriorated massively. I felt I was being marginalised and bullied by senior staff. It would have been easier to keep quiet about what I was experiencing but I knew I couldn’t do that and so I also raised a grievance about the bullying’ Noel Finn

This week’s report by Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Prisons (HMIP) into Yarl’s Wood detention centre raised many issues about healthcare, systems failures, and a disbelief of detainees’ stories which are only too familiar to me.

I worked at Yarl’s Wood between 2012 to 2013 as a mental health nurse. Almost immediately after arriving I had concerns about the mental health of the residents and when I first raised these with management they appeared to acknowledge my worries. But things didn’t improve. I was the only dedicated mental health professional for over 400 potential patients. The other nurses (including other mental health nurses) were focused on physical care and had more of an administration role – checking residents were fit for deportation.

Many of the issues I noticed at Yarl’s Wood were similar to those I had seen at other locked institutions, however I had never seen the same level of sexual undercurrent in the way officers interacted with residents as I did there.

Click on the link to read more

http://www.politics.co.uk/comment-analysis/2015/08/13/yarls-wood-the-whistleblowers-story

Filed under: Mental Health, mental health, whistleblower

17/06/2015 • 8:01 am 0

Nurses miss patient having heart attack as vending machine blocks alarm

Medics on standby fail to respond when patient has heart attack on operating table as no one can see flashing lights on cardiac arrest alarm

Nurses did not realise a patient was having a heart attack because a vending machine had been put in front of a cardiac arrest alarm, a whistleblower has revealed. The obstruction meant that medics on standby in a coffee room failed to respond when the patient had a heart attack on the operating table – because no one could see the flashing lights on the alarm. An inside at the Liverpool Heart and Chest Hospital described it as a “serious breach of patient safety”.

The whistleblower said: “While the staff were preparing a patient for heart surgery in one of the theatres, this patient suffered a cardiac arrest so normal procedures were followed, the arrest alarm was activated and, while the doctor and nurses were working on the patient, the scrub nurse was sent to see why there was no response to the arrest alarm.

Click on the link to read more

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/nhs/11675033/Nurses-miss-patient-having-heart-attack-as-vending-machine-blocks-alarm.html

A vending machine covering up a cadiac arrest alarm at Liverpool Heart and Chest Hospital, Broadgreen

Filed under: Whistleblowing, arrest alarm, NHS, whistleblower

11/02/2015 • 5:34 pm 0

Watch the Video’s ‘Climate of fear’: NHS staff scared of exposing danger to patients, whistleblowers tell RT

NHS whistleblowers take their protest to Westminster

An inquiry that found many NHS staff do not raise concerns about patient safety because they fear being ignored or bullied did not go far enough, whistle-blowing health professionals told RT. The Freedom to Speak Up Review found a “climate of fear” permeates the NHS in England, with whistleblowers subject to “shocking” treatment when they attempt to speak out. Sir Robert Francis QC, who led the inquiry, made a series of recommendations in his report including the appointment of “guardians” in each hospital to support staff who want to raise concerns. However, two former whistleblowers who spoke to RT, said the report fell short of tackling the real problems facing staff who speak out.

A group of former NHS staff protesting against the service’s “horrific” treatment of whistleblowers on Wednesday claimed the report did not go far enough to stop further incidents happening.

Click on the link to read more

http://rt.com/uk/231399-fear-nhs-whistleblowers-health/

Filed under: Uncategorized, Freedom to speak up review, NHS, Sir Robert Francis, whistleblower

29/01/2015 • 10:20 am 0

Francis NHS whistleblower report: a new beginning? – by David Drew – NHS whistleblower

New Review is a frank admission that all is not well in the NHS and that substandard care is still common place

Last June, six senior NHS professionals, including myself, met Jeremy Hunt to relate our personal histories and petition him for a public inquiry into whistleblower victimisation. We had all suffered extreme retaliation after raising serious concerns about patient care. Five of us had been dismissed. A week later Jeremy Hunt, health secretary, commissioned Sir Robert Francis to conduct a review into creating an open and honest reporting culture in the NHS. For Francis this is unfinished business from his earlier inquiries at Mid Staffordshire Foundation Trust, as he told us with some passion at our first meeting. At Mid Staffs he found it necessary to have clandestine meetings with staff after guaranteeing their anonymity. “People were just scared,” he told us.

The scope of the review was unsatisfactory. Historic cases would not be reopened or adjudicated. The review team was small and the timescale too short, we thought, to cope with the submissions we anticipated. We may have been naïve but decided to trust Francis that this could at least be a step to a full public inquiry. He reassured us that this had definitely not been ruled out.

Click on the link to read more

http://www.theguardian.com/healthcare-network/2015/jan/29/francis-review-nhs-whistleblower-report?CMP=share_btn_tw

David Drew: Author of Little Stories of Life and Death @NHSwhistleblowr

Robert Francis: ‘We now have unanimity among those who are leaders that supressing whistleblowers is absolutely wrong.’

Filed under: Uncategorized, Whistleblowing, David Drew, Freedom to speak up review, Robert Francis, whistleblower

17/01/2015 • 2:18 pm 0

Whistleblowing paramedic who criticised two hospitals for being ‘unsafe’ after patients were routinely treated in corridor is banned from work

A whisleblowing paramedic who spoke out about the chaos his local A&E departments has been banned from both hospitals. Stuart Gardner, of West Midlands Ambulance Service, was reprimanded after saying under-pressure emergency units were ‘not safe’. He has since been told he is not welcome at hospitals in Worcester and Redditch. The comments were made by the paramedic of 26 years during an interview with the BBC. During it, he described how even before the winter pressures, patients were routinely treated in corridors at the Worcester Royal Hospital.

In fact, the practice was so commonplace that ‘there were labels along the corridor of the emergency department so staff could find the patients’. ‘Last Friday, there were 18 trolleys with sick patients,’ he said. ‘There were ECGs being done, stitches, cannulas (a medical tube inserted into the body with a needle) – staff were doing everything in the corridor. ‘I’ve never seen anything like it – and I do not believe it’s safe. it’s not good for the patients and their care is being jeapordised.’ Since then, however, Mr Gardner claims he was told he was ‘not welcome’ at either the Worcester hospital or the Redditch Alexandra Hospital.

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http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-2913194/Paramedic-criticised-two-hospitals-unsafe-banned-work.html

Banned: Stuart Gardner, of West Midlands Ambulance Service, was reprimanded after saying under-pressure emergency units were ‘not safe’

Filed under: Uncategorized, Whistleblowing, paramedic, whistleblower

14/12/2014 • 10:58 am 0

‘U’ turn from Hunt’s team following media pressure – Sharmila Chowdhury

Fiona Bell, NHS whistleblower and an avid campaigner, wrote to Jeremy Hunt, Secretary of State and Ed Jones, Special Advisor, in 14 October 2014, raising serious concerns on behalf of a Morecambe Bay whistleblower, regarding a nurse who allegedly went around turning off the drips off elderly end of life patients in order to speed up their deaths. Fiona, hoped that due to the serious nature of her complaint, matter would be urgently investigated. However, to her amazement, Fiona received the following response:

You can access the full Sunday Times piece from Sharmila Chowdhury’s website and of course see how they got that U turn from the Department of Health. http://sharmilachowdhury.com/2014/12/14/u-turn-from-hunts-team-following-media-pressure/

Filed under: Uncategorized, whistleblower

05/12/2014 • 5:29 pm 0

Exclusive: ‘I had to blow the whistle on care home’

Carer Jamie McKnight called the Care Quality Commission (CQC) when his concerns about Manorcroft were ignored by senior managers. After starting work there in April, Mr McKnight said he became increasingly concerned about staffing, residents being left in bed for days at a time and a lack of respect by staff. “It got to a point where the home was understaffed all the time,” he said. “People weren’t getting out of bed. “They only had one hoist for 40 residents – lots of them were getting pressure sores from being in bed all the time. “I wouldn’t like it if my mum was in that home in those conditions.”

Click on the link to read

http://www.dewsburyreporter.co.uk/news/local/exclusive-i-had-to-blow-the-whistle-on-care-home-1-6989038

Filed under: Uncategorized, Whistleblowing, carehome, whistleblower

03/12/2014 • 4:41 pm 0

NHS Grampian patient care whistleblower quits post

A whistleblower who went direct to the Scottish government to raise concerns about NHS Grampian has revealed he has quit his post in frustration. Speaking to BBC Scotland, cancer specialist Malcolm Loudon said he felt he had no option but to approach former health secretary Alex Neil. The findings of a series of subsequent investigations were published earlier http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-north-east-orkney-shetland-30287223 NHS Grampian has accepted all the recommendations of the reports and apologised to patients. A report by Health Improvement Scotland (HIS) said patient care at Aberdeen Royal Infirmary faces a “serious impact” if problems are not “urgently addressed”. It made 13 recommendations for improvement for NHS Grampian.

Click on the link to read

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-north-east-orkney-shetland-30301258

Filed under: Uncategorized, NHS, whistleblower

19/11/2014 • 8:52 am 0

Junior doctors still lack the confidence to whistle-blow

Many trainee doctors are still too afraid to blow the whistle on patient safety concerns, according to a new report by the General Medical Council, which also that found nearly one in 10 experience bullying in the workplace. The medical regulator’s annual survey of 50,000 doctors in training saw a dramatic decline in the number of patient safety concerns raised, after doctors were told their anonymity could not be guaranteed. Only 0.8 per cent of trainees raised a concern, compared to 5.2 per cent last year. Part of the decline may be due to changes to the GMC’s survey methods, but the regulator said that “foregoing complete anonymity” had also been “off-putting for some”.

Click on the link to read more

http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/health-and-families/health-news/report-junior-doctors-still-lack-the-confidence-to-whistleblow-9868844.html

Filed under: Uncategorized, Bullying, Doctors, whistleblower

30/10/2014 • 5:53 pm 1

Whistleblower calls for support to stop nurses quitting profession – By Nicola Merrifield – Nursing Times

Leading nurse whistleblower Helene Donnelly has urged the profession to support fellow workers to ensure “much-needed” nurses and carers do not leave their posts.

Addressing the Nursing Times Awards last night, Ms Donnelly said nurses should help each other to deal with the “ever-increasing pressure” staff members are experiencing. She said there was a feeling among the profession that nurses were not valued and their goodwill was being exploited. “Well this must change,” said Ms Donnelly, who whistleblew about the care failings she witnessed at Mid Staffordshire Foundation Trust and gave evidence to the Francis Inquiry. “I’m immensely proud of the nursing profession and the NHS,” she said. “We’ve collectively taken a huge battering in recent times…. If we support, empower and enable each other to deliver the best possible care we can at all levels throughout the profession and wider, we will achieve this change.” She added: “I know that many of us feel so undervalued and so exhausted by ever-increasing pressure they feel they have no option but to leave the profession.

Click on the link to read more

Whistleblower calls for support to stop nurses quitting profession

Filed under: Uncategorized, Whistleblowing, whistleblower

07/10/2014 • 1:30 pm 0

The patients kept in filth: NHS-funded private mental health hospital in police probe after whistleblower uploads videos of the horrendous conditions

An NHS-funded mental hospital is being investigated by police and an employee has been charged with assault after concerns were raised about patients’ safety there. Police were alerted to problems at the privately run Uplands Independent Hospital in Fareham, Hampshire, after a member of staff who was leaving filmed the ‘filthy’ conditions the patients lived in. The whistleblower’s video showed soiled mattresses, surfaces covered with cigarette ash, stained carpets and congealing food in the hospital which currently cares for 21 adults, some of whom have been detained under the Mental Health Act. After he uploaded his silent video tour of the home, which begins with the words ‘No words needed’, it prompted hospital regulator the Care Quality Commission (CQC) to send investigators to inspect Uplands unannounced in August.

Click on the link to read more

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2779563/Filthy-mental-health-hospital-centre-police-probe-whistleblower-uploads-videos-expose-soiled-mattresses-horrendous-toilets.html

Filed under: Uncategorized, NHS-funded mental hospital, whistleblower

07/10/2014 • 1:14 pm 0

Whistle blowing doctor finalises legal claim for unfair dismissal

THE NHS has failed to stop a leading Midland doctor dealing with family planning, contraception and sexual health in Redditch and Bromsgrove from finalising her legal claim for unfair dismissal after making whistle blowing complaints about the way certain services were run. But Dr Poornima Prabhu complained at Birmingham Employment Tribunal about delays in progressing with her claim against the Worcestershire Health & Care NHS Trust after the respondents’ application to strike out her case failed.

Click on the link to read more

http://www.bromsgroveadvertiser.co.uk/news/local/11516616.Whistle_blowing_doctor_finalises_legal_claim_for_unfair_dismissal/

Filed under: Uncategorized, Whistleblowing, whistleblower, Worcestershire Health & Care NHS Trust

13/07/2014 • 8:46 am 0

Surgeon wins fight after NHS cover-up

A SURGEON is seeking a seven-figure compensation payout after an employment tribunal ruled he was unfairly sacked for gross misconduct after blowing the whistle on poor patient care at a hospital.
Arjuna Weerasinghe, who believes he contracted pneumonia in a filthy operating theatre at Basildon Hospital in Essex, raised concerns in 2010 after vital equipment was unavailable when he performed surgery on a man who died three days later.

Click on the link to read more
Surgeon wins fight after NHS cover up

Filed under: Uncategorized, NHS, whistleblower

12/07/2014 • 9:32 am 0

Now police called in over whistleblower’s claims of a ‘cover-up’ at the top of the NHS that led to deaths

Police are investigating whistleblower Gary Walker’s claims of a ‘cover-up’ at the top of the NHS that led to deaths, the Mail can reveal.
The allegations implicate several former and serving senior NHS managers who could now be interviewed in the inquiry.
Mr Walker was dismissed from his job as chief executive of United Lincolnshire Hospitals NHS Trust in 2010 after raising fears that a Labour drive to meet targets compromised safety. He claims a £500,000 taxpayer-funded gagging order was used to stop him speaking out.

Click on the link to read more
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2689429/Now-police-called-whistleblowers-claims-cover-NHS-led-deaths.html

Filed under: Uncategorized, NHS, whistleblower

07/07/2014 • 1:53 pm 0

Exclusive: Provider ordered to pay whistleblower £80k compensation – Nursing Times

A whistleblowing nurse has been awarded £80,000 by an employment tribunal that found she was unfairly dismissed after suffering “detriment” for making protected disclosures over patient safety concerns.
Elaine Fernandez won the case against Allied Healthcare Group, a provider of nursing services across the UK.

Click on the link to read more
Exclusive Provider ordered to pay whistleblower £80k compensation

Filed under: Uncategorized, NHS, whistleblower

25/06/2014 • 8:36 am 0

NHS is still gripped by a culture of fear: Inquiry into whistleblowing set up by barrister who investigated Mid Staffs

Sir Robert Francis will chair the probe into NHS whistleblowing
Barrister ran the public inquiry into the Mid Staffordshire hospital scandal
Says many staff told him they were still too scared to speak out
He has contacted whistleblowers and will interview them about experiences

The NHS is to hold an inquiry into whistleblowing over claims that a ‘culture of fear’ still stops staff exposing poor care.
Sir Robert Francis, the barrister who ran the public inquiry into the Mid Staffordshire hospital scandal, will chair the probe.
Sir Robert said that since publishing his findings 16 months ago into the unnecessary deaths of hundreds of patients at Mid Staffs, many staff had contacted him saying they were still too scared to speak out.

Click on the link to read more
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2668566/NHS-gripped-culture-fear-Inquiry-whistleblowing-set-barrister-investigated-Mid-Staffs.html?ITO=1490&ns_mchannel=rss&ns_campaign=1490

Filed under: Uncategorized, NHS, whistleblower

23/06/2014 • 9:50 am 0

Sharmila Chowdhury Whistleblower 6 with Jeremy Hunt via ITV London

Following from a letter sent to Jeremy Hunt, Health Secretary, by
Sharmila Chowdhury, a NHS whistleblower, and from the 6
whistleblowers to Simon Stevens, Head of NHS, a meeting was
arranged with Jeremy Hunt and Simon Stevens at Richmond House
on 18 June 2014 to discuss serious problems relating to NHS
whistleblowing. In attendance were other prominent whistleblowers.
The group described problems which surrounded whistlblowing and
the risks to patients which has resulted in NHS staff being too
scared to speak up. The group unanimously have demanded for
public inquiry, so that lessons can be learned and ‘correct’
measures can be implemented to protect all whistleblowers. Hunt
acknowledged that there were serious problems with whistleblowing
in the NHS and it was far from perfect. He also agreed there is a
still a long way to go.

Fiona Bell of Cure the NHS North East, helped broker the meeting for Sharmila Chowdhury and other whistleblowers
Well done to all getting into the media with national coverage.

Filed under: Uncategorized, Jeremy Hunt, NHS, whistleblower

19/06/2014 • 8:05 am 0

NHS may face whistleblower public inquiry – Sharmila Chowdhury

Jeremy Hunt and Simon Stevens, the head of the NHS, met in London with six whistleblowers who have won the support of senior backbenchers.

Jeremy Hunt is understood to be considering creating a “beefed-up” ombudsman to handle NHS whistleblowing cases and end the culture of silence in the health service.

The health secretary has also said that he is open to holding a Leveson-style public inquiry into the system after hearing stinging criticism of NHS trusts and health unions.

Yesterday Mr Hunt and Simon Stevens, the head of the NHS, met in London with six whistleblowers who have won the support of senior backbenchers on both sides of the Commons in their campaign for an inquiry and fresh investigations into their cases.

Click on the link to read more
http://sharmilachowdhury.com/2014/06/19/nhs-may-face-whistleblower-public-inquiry/

Filed under: Uncategorized, Jeremy Hunt, NHS, whistleblower

16/06/2014 • 8:13 am 0

NHS whistleblowers Sharmila Chowdhury, Jenny Fecitt, Dr David Drew, Annabelle Blackburn, Professor Edwin Jesudason, and Fiona Bell to air complaints with Jeremy Hunt

Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt is to meet six NHS whistleblowers who claim he is not doing enough to help them.
The group are headed by a radiographer who was sacked after exposing corruption at her local hospital.
Sharmila Chowdhury claims Mr Hunt has refused so far to intervene in her case and ensure she is restored to her job.
Mr Hunt has in the past said that whistleblowers in the health service should be free from persecution by their employers.
However, the group claim he must now back his words up with action.

Click on the link to read more
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/health/healthnews/10901859/NHS-whistleblowers-to-air-complaints-with-Jeremy-Hunt.html

Filed under: Uncategorized, Jeremy Hunt, NHS, whistleblower

12/06/2014 • 8:14 am 0

Walsall Manor whistleblower Dr David Drew releases book dedicated to toddler Kyle Keen

Dr David Drew has lifted the lid on his turbulent career at Walsall Manor Hospital in his new book, the Little Stories of Life and Death

Click on the link to read more
http://www.walsalladvertiser.co.uk/Report-Kyle-send-shockwaves/story-21223113-detail/story.html

http://www.troubador.co.uk/book_info.asp?bookid=2822

Filed under: Uncategorized, NHS, whistleblower

03/06/2014 • 11:02 am 0

Letter to Jeremy Hunt 2 – Help & Justice for Sharmila Chowdhury Whistleblower

Despite Sharmila winning the Interim Relief Hearing by the court, and being proven to be a whistleblower (which means that she was unfairly dismissed as a direct result of whistleblowing) the Department of Health refuse to intervene in an “employment issue.

“I have lost my career, income and health. As you are aware I am now suffering from breast and lung cancer, which numerous consultants believe is directly due to stress suffered as a result of whistleblowing. Due to lack of income, I am also about to lose my home. This has come about because of Department of Health’s refusal to intervene. Instead they watched me suffer over a period of 4 years and turn a blind eye. I am afraid that the Department of Health (and you as Secretary of State along with your predecessor), is ultimately responsible for my current situation. Yet, you fail to behave responsibly”.

Please click on Sharmila Chowdhury’s website to read more
http://sharmilachowdhury.com/2014/06/03/letter-to-jeremy-hunt-2-help-justice-for-sharmila-chowdhury/

Filed under: Uncategorized, NHS, whistleblower

05/05/2013 • 12:20 pm 2

Such wicked people in this world. Keep strong Julie…

Hospital heroine is victim of death threats

The NHS whistleblower who exposed systematic neglect and abuse at Stafford Hospital has been forced to move out of her home after a five-year campaign of hate mail and death threats.

http://www.express.co.uk/news/health/397183/Hospital-heroine-is-victim-of-death-threats

Filed under: Uncategorized, NHS, whistleblower, whistleblowing

24/04/2013 • 7:00 am 2

And still nurses live in fear and intimidation at work for telling the truth.

Whistleblowing nurses ‘discouraged’

A quarter of nurses have been discouraged about blowing the whistle on concerns over patient care, a poll has suggested.

The Royal College of Nursing (RCN) survey found that 24% of nurses said they had been warned off raising concerns – in spite of the Stafford Hospital scandal.

Filed under: Uncategorized, NHS, NHS complaints cover-up, patient safety, whistleblower, whistleblowing

14/02/2013 • 12:13 am 0

Mid Staffs comment: This is why the NHS must defend its whistleblowers

The Mid Staffs scandal shows the NHS needs staff who are prepared to blow the whistle more than ever, says Stephen Barclay MP.

In the wake of the Francis Report into the deaths of up to 1,200 people at Mid Staffordshire NHS trust; and the news that further hospitals are under investigation for higher than expected death rates, it is clear our current system of regulation has failed.
One way to improve this is to offer greater support for whistleblowers. Given the complex and rapidly changing nature of healthcare regulators will always be playing catch up. It is those on the ground who have a unique vantage point to uncover wrongdoing and ensure patient safety.
Read more: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/health/healthnews/9865521/Mid-Staffs-comment-This-is-why-the-NHS-must-defend-its-whistleblowers.html

Filed under: Uncategorized, Doctors, Hospital, Medical Negligence, NHS, whistleblower, whistleblowing

16/12/2012 • 10:31 am 0

The secret midwife: Psychotic mothers, exhausted doctors and nurses asleep on the job: A whistleblower reveals the desperate truth behind those rose-tinted TV shows

With Call The Midwife and One Born Every Minute enjoying huge success, bringing babies into the world has rarely had more attention.

Yet the reality could hardly be more different from the cosy TV image. In fact, maternity care is facing crisis.

Here, one midwife describes for the first time the conditions she and her colleagues endure at a London hospital: the emergencies, the danger, the exhaustion – and the joy. Names, locations and timings have been changed to protect identities. But the episodes are all too real.

Filed under: Uncategorized, Midwifery, NHS, whistleblower

An NHS worker who says she faces being fired for whistleblowing is going on hunger strike outside the Department of Health.

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