Teenager living in 'continuous pain' after surgeon Dr Yaser Jabbar carried out 'inappropriate' operations
A 15-year-old boy who was operated on twice by a now unlicensed Great Ormond Street surgeon is living with "continuous" pain.
Finias Sandu has been told by an independent review the procedures he underwent on both his legs were "unacceptable" and "inappropriate" for his age.
The teenager from Essex was born with a condition that causes curved bones in his legs.
Aged seven, a reconstructive procedure was carried out on Finias's left leg, lengthening the limb by 3.5cm.
A few years later, the same operation was carried out on his right leg which involved wearing an invasive and heavy metal frame for months.
He has now been told by independent experts these procedures should not have taken place and concerns have been raised over a lack of imaging being taken prior to the operations.
His doctor at London's prestigious Great Ormond Street Hospital was former consultant orthopaedic surgeon Yaser Jabbar. Sky News has spoken to others he treated.
Mr Jabbar also did not arrange for updated scans or for relevant X-rays to be conducted ahead of the procedures.
The surgeries have been found to have caused Finias "harm" and left him in constant pain.
"The pain is there every day, every day I'm continuously in pain," he told Sky News.
"It's not something really sharp, although it does get to a certain point where it hurts quite a lot, but it's always there. It just doesn't leave, it's a companion to me, just always there."
Care of over 700 patients being assessed
Mr Jabbar rescinded his UK medical licence in January last year after working at Great Ormond Street between 2017 and 2022.
The care of his 700-plus patients is being assessed, with some facing corrective surgery, among them Finias.
"Trusting somebody is hard to do, knowing what they have done to me physically and emotionally, you know, it's just too much to comprehend for me," he said.
"It wasn't something just physically, like my leg pain and everything else. It was emotionally, because I put my trust in that specific doctor. My parents and I don't really understand the more scientific terms, we just went by what he said."
Doctors refused to treat Finias because of his surgeries
Finias and his family relocated to their native Romania soon after the reconstructive frame was removed from his right leg in the summer of 2021.
The pain worsened and they sought advice from doctors in Romania, who refused to treat Finias because of the impact of his surgeries.
Dozens of families seeking legal claims
His mother Cornelia Sandu is "furious" and feels her trust in the hospital has been shattered. They are now among dozens of families seeking legal claims.
Cyrus Plaza from Hudgell Solicitors is representing the family. He said: "In cases where it has been identified that harm was caused, we want to see Great Ormond Street Hospital agreeing to pay interim payments of compensation for the children, so that if they need therapy or treatment now, they can access it."
Finias is accessing therapy and mental health support as he prepares for corrective surgery later in the year.
A spokesperson for Great Ormond Street Hospital told Sky News: "We are deeply sorry to Finias and his family, and all the patients and families who have been impacted.
"We want every patient and family who comes to our hospital to feel safe and cared for. We will always discuss concerns families may have and, where they submit claims, we will work to ensure the legal process can be resolved as quickly as possible."
Service not 'safe for patients'
Sky News has attempted to contact Mr Jabbar.
An external review into the wider orthopaedic department at the hospital began in September 2022.
It was commissioned after the Royal College of Surgeons warned the hospital's lower limb reconstruction service was not "safe for patients or adequate to meet demand".
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Daily Mail
35 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
Victory for Darlington nurses as they win landmark battle for a female-only hospital changing room
Eight pioneering nurses who formed their own union to defend the rights of women have won a landmark battle for a female-only changing room. The Darlington nurses launched a legal action saying transgender policies put them at risk, deprived them of dignity and breached their human rights. They claimed a biological male colleague identifying as a woman called Rose stared at their breasts as they were getting undressed and lingered too long in the changing room. One nurse had a panic attack after Rose repeatedly asked when they were alone, 'Are you getting changed yet?' Now, with their case heading to the courts, Health Secretary Wes Streeting has intervened, ordering Darlington Memorial Hospital to give the women their own room. One of them, Bethany Hutchison, said they 'hugely appreciate' the action 'to restore our safety and dignity in the workplace in line with the law'. And she said the nurses would not 'stop until this action is extended urgently to female workers across the NHS without any unnecessary delay'. The Darlington nurses sued their NHS trust a year ago, winning overwhelming support across the country. 'Millions of women stand with them,' said Their victory comes after it emerged last week that NHS chiefs have been forced to rip up their pro-trans guidance after it was rendered illegal by the Supreme Court. The NHS Confederation, which represents trusts, has quietly withdrawn guidance telling hospitals that they should allow trans people to use their chosen lavatories and changing rooms. A senior NHS England official visited Darlington Memorial Hospital unannounced last week and described the changing facilities for female staff as 'inadequate'. The official apologised to one of the Darlington nurses, promising to act 'with speed' by providing male, female and gender-neutral changing rooms, adding: 'We want you to feel comfortable and safe.' Last year, after raising concerns the nurses were told by HR that they needed to get 're-educated', 'compromise' and 'be more inclusive'. After the nurses publicised their claim, the County Durham and Darlington NHS Foundation Trust gave them a 'temporary' office for changing into uniforms. However, supporters of the nurses said that the office had no lockers and opened on to a public corridor, resulting in the women branding it as 'dehumanising' and 'humiliating'. When their union was reluctant to lend its support, the eight nurses formed their own, the Darlington Nursing Union and submitted their proposals for a way forward to Mr Streeting. Their guidelines provided 'a fair and manageable way forward to protect safe single-sex spaces for all NHS staff in line with the equality law'. In addition, it respected the rights of those with the protected characteristic of 'gender reassignment', legally known as 'transexuals'. Tory leader Kemi Badenoch backed the nurses saying: 'A woman should never be forced to get undressed in the presence of a man. The case of the Darlington Nurses is yet another example of women being demonised and patronised for raising legitimate concerns about single-sex spaces.' Mr Streeting was forced to wait until after April's Supreme Court ruling that the word sex in the Equality Act means biological sex before making his latest intervention row. Last month it was revealed that even before the Supreme Court ruling, the Royal College of Nursing had written to the Darlington trust saying they were acting unlawfully. The letter ordered the trust to provide single-sex changing rooms 'without delay.' Andrea Williams, chief executive of the Christian Legal Centre, said: 'A climate of fear has pervaded the system and many from top to bottom have been intimidated into silence and inaction. Equality and diversity policies have been weaponised to silence dissent and to prevent women's safety and dignity being protected in the workplace. 'We are grateful for the action from Wes Streeting and NHS England in this matter and pray that they will now quickly follow this through so that the nurses can return to the female changing rooms without delay.'
Daily Mail
36 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
EXCLUSIVE The NHS recoups just £29million for treating European patients... while forking out £1billion in return
The Government is failing to recoup what could amount to millions of pounds each year from European countries for treating their citizens on the NHS, The Mail on Sunday can reveal. The Department of Health and Social Care charged European nations just £29.5million last year to pay for their citizens to be treated in Britain's hospitals. Yet the UK's bill for the healthcare costs of British pensioners and holidaymakers treated in European hospitals came to nearly £1billion in the same period. Critics say it raises concerns that the Government is allowing the NHS to be 'taken for a ride' by Europe on healthcare costs. While European nations bill the Government for care provided to Britons based on hospital invoices, the MoS has learned UK officials compile bills for countries based on 'estimates' of costs incurred by the NHS to treat their citizens. Campaigners say the true figure is likely to be significantly higher. And while the NHS is failing to get the best deal possible for taxpayers – Chancellor Rachel Reeves is preparing a £30billion boost to the health service at the expense of the police and councils. The revelations come after the MoS revealed in April that hospitals in England had written off £256.4million owed by overseas visitors for NHS procedures. Alp Mehmet, chairman of Migration Watch UK, said: 'The problem lies in our total inability to monitor non-UK nationals' use of the NHS, a scandalous failure to secure payments due, and naivety when dealing with the EU which has so often taken us for a ride.' Tory MP Joe Robertson, a member of the Health and Social Care Select Committee, said: 'It beggars belief that the NHS has no record of the cost of care it provides to foreign nationals. 'Our NHS is not supposed to be a subsidised health service for the rest of Europe but plainly that's what it is becoming.' There is a 'reciprocal agreement' for healthcare in Europe, which means all citizens in the European Economic Area (EEA) are entitled to some, or all, of their healthcare needs to be paid for by their home nation when abroad. While European health systems, which usually charge upfront, are good at logging such details, the NHS is not – hence the rough estimates. The figures, which come from a Freedom of Information request by the MoS, reveal the NHS billed Spain £6.7million during 2023/24 and paid back around £441million. Some £225million went to Ireland and £186million to France – but the NHS billed just £17million and £11million in return. Germany received £10.9million and paid back £3.5million to the UK. And there are also more British visitors to Europe (63million) every year than European visitors to the UK (26million). But the gap between what the UK pays, and what it bills back, has worsened over the last decade. In 2014/15, the UK claimed back £49.7million from Europe but in 2023/24, it was £20.2million less, a drop of 40 per cent. And bills for Britons treated abroad have risen by 40 per cent, from £674.4million in 2014/15 to £948.9million last year. Mr Robertson said he had written to the Public Accounts Committee to look at this subject and 'force the Government's hand'. A Department of Health spokesman said the UK charges EU nations when their citizens use the NHS as part of a deal which ensures Britains 'can also get healthcare when visiting Europe'.
Daily Mail
an hour ago
- Daily Mail
Threat to wild salmon as sea lice show resistance to chemical used to protect fish
The threat to wild salmon from sea lice could be worse than feared as a new study shows the parasite is building up resistance to the chemical used in fish farming pens to tackle it. Campaigners also believe emamectin benzoate – known as Slice – is leaking out and causing environmental damage and want the toxic compound banned. However, despite these concerns, the Scottish Government last year extended its use in Scottish waters to 2028. Now the Irish government has sounded a warning that Slice is becoming less effective in killing the lice that infest fish farms. New research shows young wild salmon passing coastal fish farms on their migratory routes are increasingly falling prey to lice coming out of pens. The report by the Inland Fisheries Ireland agency is based on almost 20 years of tagging wild salmon. It concludes: 'Results of the present analysis provide clear evidence of significantly reduced return of adult salmon linked to salmon lice infestation from salmon farms. Data also suggests the effects of lice from salmon farms on wild stocks are underestimated because of growing resistance to Slice.' Slice can damage human DNA, and the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (Sepa) has found it leaking from fish farm pens and harming sea life. Campaign group WildFish Scotland said the latest study's conclusions are 'exactly what we have been saying for years'. Interim director Andrew Graham-Stewart added: 'Successive Scottish Governments have enabled the salmon farming industry to expand rapidly without meaningful safeguards to protect the environment and wild salmon. It is permitted to use a host of highly toxic chemicals, including Slice, for the treatment of parasites and diseases. 'However, regulatory change has seen substantial watering down and delay, in response to heavy lobbying of Scottish ministers by the major salmon farming companies in Scotland. 'Make no mistake, this industry, as it is currently run, is driving many wild Atlantic salmon sub-populations inexorably towards extinction.' The ruling allowing the industry to continue using Slice came shortly after industry body Salmon Scotland treated Rural Affairs Secretary Mairi Gougeon and her husband Baptiste to hospitality worth £1,500 as guests of chief executive Tavish Scott at Scotland's Six Nations rugby clash against France in February last year. There is no note of what was discussed but the Scottish Government has repeatedly stated that the Slice decision was not Ms Gougeon's to make and it was not discussed at Murrayfield. The industry is worth £760 million to the Scottish economy and employs 2,500 people, but in 2023 a total of 17.4 million fish died prematurely in captivity amid enduring concerns over animal welfare. A Scottish Government spokesman said: 'To protect wild fish, Sepa introduced a new framework to manage the risk of sea lice from fish farms in February 2024.' Salmon Scotland said: 'Fish farmers use Slice as a fully-licensed product, approved by vets and regulators.'
