NI health: Behaviour of some heart surgeons 'appalling', says Mike Nesbitt
A report detailing a culture of poor behaviour by some heart surgeons at Northern Ireland's cardiac surgery unit is "appalling", Stormont's health minister has said.The paper, first reported by UTV, raised serious concerns within the unit and said the issues had led to a "significant risk to patient safety". On Tuesday, Mike Nesbitt said there had clearly been a "bad breakdown in relationships" among senior members of the team and that the report's findings were "entirely unacceptable".In a statement, the Belfast Trust acknowledges that "staff have felt hurt and unable to speak out" and said it is "committed to making changes which we have begun implementing".
The independent inspectors were brought in last December to review the cardiac surgery unit.The unit, which is based at the Royal Victoria Hospital in Belfast, is a regional service for patients across Northern Ireland.Almost 1,000 operations are carried out by the trust's cardiac surgery unit every year.DUP Upper Bann assembly member (MLA) Diane Dodds said the report had shown a "litany of problems".She said at one point, an operation had to be cancelled because of "interpersonal differences in theatre" between surgical staff, and that relations had broken down so badly that four surgeons were working from home.
The report also found in one dispute staff said they feared violence would break out between colleagues putting patients at risk.Over 70 staff who spoke to the review as whistle-blowers said some acted inappropriately in dealing with issues.Nesbitt told the assembly that he plans to meet the chair of the Belfast Trust to assess why the issues had been allowed to go on for so long.He also said he expected to see meaningful change as a result of the review."I have never come across anything like this in my first year in post... it is rare but it's incredibly important and it is a very worrying time," said the minister.Foyle SDLP MLA Sinead McLaughlin said her son-in-law is waiting for open heart surgery and that she was "flabbergasted" at the contents of the report.Nesbitt told the assembly that he was unaware of any resulting disciplinaries from the review but he would follow up when he meets the Belfast Trust.A spokesperson for the Belfast Trust said it is "appalled by the staff experiences described" in the review."While we are reassured that the cardiac surgery service remains clinically safe with excellent outcomes, we accept that there have been behaviours which, at times, have made for an intolerable working environment."However we accept that behaviours must change."We owe it to our staff and the patients they care for to get this right. Belfast Trust has accepted the recommendations of the independent external review and is working swiftly to take these forward."
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Daily Mail
an hour ago
- Daily Mail
Revealed: The game-changing new test that can spot a severe condition endured by millions of women early - and spare them from years of agony
It affects one in ten women, causes severe pain and can reduce the chances of having a child. And yet it can take years for endometriosis – where tissue similar to the lining of the womb grows in other parts of the body – to be diagnosed; some women suffer for almost a decade before it is identified.
BBC News
an hour ago
- BBC News
Middlesbrough hospital consultants charged 108% more for parking
Consultants and some doctors at a hospital have seen staff parking charges increase by more than 100%, a union rises accompanied the introduction of automatic number plate recognition (ANPR) at James Cook University Hospital in Middlesbrough.A University Hospitals Tees (UHT) spokesperson confirmed £1.8m would be invested in car park improvements over the coming British Medical Association (BMA) has described the new charges as "shocking and unacceptable". Some members of staff on lower salaries would see a decrease in charges but consultants would pay a tariff for a dedicated car park for them, said the BMA has said charges for consultants at the hospital have gone up by 108%, with some doctors on specific shift patterns seeing increases in excess of 125%.The price changes will bring the South Tees hospitals in line with the policy of the North Tees and Hartlepool NHS Trust, which has had varied prices for staff over the last 10 years. 'Lack of understanding' Dr Andy Thornley, representing the BMA, said: "Charging staff who are just trying to come to work to care for patients at the hospital to make financial gains for a struggling trust is wrong. "Worse still is the unfair charges that patients and their visitors are being forced to pay, with no choice in order to access the hospital."This is just the latest in what can only be described as chaotic implementation of new parking measures at the hospital, impacting not only consultants but also resident doctors who are still unsure what the new charges will mean for them."We want assurances that staff who are members of the parking scheme will not be fined additional charges for simply coming to work to care for patients."A UNISON spokesperson reinforced this message, stating that imposing higher parking charges on NHS staff and patients "shows a shocking lack of understanding" of the financial struggle many are trust has said it is the first increase in two years and that any surplus funds will be diverted into patient care.A spokesperson said: "We understand the price rise is not welcome news, but we have kept the increase as low as possible."We would like to reassure all our patients and visitors that the income from car parking is used to maintain our car parks including the costs of repairs and maintenance, lighting, gritting and security, all of which helps us to retain our 'Park Mark' Safer Parking Scheme accreditation."This coming year will see us invest £1.8m in improvements to our car parking." Follow BBC Tees on X, Facebook, Nextdoor and Instagram.
BBC News
2 hours ago
- BBC News
NHS, defence, education and more in focus for voters in government's Spending Review
Chancellor Rachel Reeves is facing more difficult choices in the Spending Review on will sets the budgets for all government departments over the next few review will confirm how much taxpayers' money will be spent on the NHS, defence, police, education and other public services used by millions, as well as how much money the government plans to invest in projects like new public she makes her final preparations, people living in Cleckheaton in West Yorkshire outlined what they think her priority should be. 'The NHS is on its knees' Melissa Marley, 32, has spent the last two years studying at the University of Huddersfield to become a midwife but has quit her course after amassing debt of £60,000 and said there was "no hope for jobs at the end of it".The mother-of-three would like the chancellor to put more money into the NHS because it is "on its knees" and added "people abroad would kill for a system like that, so it needs protecting". Originally from Wakefield, she went back into education in 2021 to provide a better life for her began training as a nurse in 2022 before training as a midwife in well as £20,000 of tuition fees, she also owes about £40,000 in her maintenance grant accrued through her studies over the past few was originally going to defer due to health issues but decided to stop her course and is now hoping to become a maternity support role supports midwives, rather than being a midwife said the lack of jobs in midwifery was "sad because there are so many people putting so much work in. "They are working hard, having to miss times with their family, their children and then to have nothing at the end of it is sad". 'A less stable world' Pensioner John Addison agreed that a big part of the Spending Review had to be more funding for the NHS .He said that it was "hard work getting appointments".Mr Addison expressed his concern about spending on defence - and how more money was needed for that. He explained that he worried about the future for his grandchildren and younger people growing up in a less stable said that the Army had "been run down lately so we need to up it a bit because you never know what is around the corner with what's going off in the world." Earlier this month, a British defence review published recommendations which welcomed the government's ambition to spend 3% of Gross Domestic Product by 2034 but warned "as we live in more turbulent times it may be necessary to go faster."Several Nato allies have already committed to spending more than 5%. School buildings 'in a terrible state' Bill and Pauline Wardlaw would like to see funds focused on the education system and investing in the future. Bill was particularly concerned about problems with school said they were in "a terrible state" which meant "children are going to school in inadequate buildings and a lot of money should be spent getting them up to a decent standard".Pauline agreed with her husband but would also money spent on ensuring infrastructure around new housing estates is in place. She said when new housing is built "they need to make sure there is provision for the people that they are going to put in those houses - like doctors, education, schools etc because it is just not there".Ms Wardlaw was also frustrated with trying to get a GP appointment: "It's three weeks before you can see a doctor unless you ring up at 08:00 and then you are in a queue." 'Support for mums is needed' Beth Flannagan-Jones was out with her 16 month old daughter wanted to see more cash targeted at activities and support groups for mothers and babies. She said toddler groups could help mums who felt "alone".Ms Flannagan-Jones said there were "a couple of options but many of them are private and you have to pay for them"."If you have not got a lot of money and are on a budget I think a few more council groups and mum groups are missing," she added. 'Green investments need oversight' Pensioner David Lumb acknowledged the cuts to winter fuel allowance had been damaging to Labour party as some older people relied on the payment. He backed a more targeted approach to the benefit - which seemed to chime with the announced on Monday changes to the level the benefit would be paid at, meaning 75% of pensioners would now be eligible. His biggest priority was the NHS citing "the way the nation relied" on the service during the pandemic. However, Mr Lumb said he would also like to see more investment in green initiatives, but when it comes to home insulation he said it depended on "how efficiently it is done". "Quite often the government sponsor these things and they aren't properly monitored," he added. Listen to highlights from West Yorkshire on BBC Sounds, catch up with the latest episode of Look North.
