Dr Alan Clamp, chief executive of the Professional Standards Authority (PSA), testified in the public inquiry into the crimes of nurse Lucy Letby and suggested that regulating senior hospital managers could aid in providing better patient safety. The PSA oversees the functions of the 10 regulators of people who work in health and social care such as doctors, nurses, pharmacists, dentists, and social workers. Dr Clamp pointed out that “steps should be taken to enhance the professional development and accountability of NHS managers.” His proposal aligned with the one made in the 2001 Bristol Royal Infirmary Inquiry report that aimed to investigate the failings in paediatric heart surgery in the 1980s and 1990s.
Dr Clamp stated that introducing regulation, in any form, for NHS managers could help prevent or decrease patient harm by promoting accountability. He also said that, “Whatever we put in place still needs improvement” and recommended enhancing the professional development and accountability of NHS managers since it had been 24 years since the Bristol Inquiry.
In July 2016, Letby was moved to clerical duties after paediatricians on the neonatal unit at the Countess of Chester Hospital raised concerns. Hospital executives opted to commission reviews into the increased mortality on the unit in 2015 and 2016, with the intention of returning Letby to the unit before Cheshire Constabulary was requested to investigate the matter in May 2017.
It was discovered during the trial that Letby murdered seven infants and attempted to murder seven more between June 2015 and June 2016 when she was working in the neonatal unit. She is now serving 15 whole-life orders. The Thirlwall Inquiry, which will look into Letby’s case, is expected to publish its findings in the autumn. Recently, the NHS produced a consultation document to ask for views on the regulation of managers, including the types of managers that should be regulated, whether those who have conducted serious misconduct should be barred, and if there should be a professional register of managers
Read the full article from The BBC here: Read More
