Latest news with #OperationBramber
Telegraph
10-05-2025
- Health
- Telegraph
Police to haul in Home Office support for scandal-hit hospital investigation
Police investigating manslaughter claims at a hospital in Brighton are looking at hauling in Home Office support, the Telegraph can reveal. Sussex Police are investigating more than 90 deaths at the Royal Sussex County Hospital in Brighton following alleged botched surgeries, as well as a further 100-plus cases of serious harm. But concerns have been raised about the pace of inquiries with documents seen by The Telegraph revealing the force is getting through just three cases per month. Sources told The Telegraph the investigation into the deaths, which date as far back as a decade, could take years to complete, after the reviews began last October. At the current pace it would take more than five years – assuming no more cases are added – for all of the more than 200 occurrences to be checked by the investigators and expert surgeons brought in to assess each individual case. As a result, the police force are considering seeking special assistance from the Home Office to boost its resources and the staff numbers working on the investigation, it is understood, although this request has not yet officially been made. Police forces are able to request a Special Police Grant from the Home Office when exceptional circumstances or events arise that require them to redirect a significant amount of time and resource to one investigation. There are two independent medical experts helping the police, including one for neurosurgery and one for general surgery. Operation Bramber was launched in 2023 after whistleblowers raised concerns about avoidable deaths at the hospital, run by University Hospitals Sussex NHS Foundation Trust, in relation to around 40 deaths between 2015 and 2021. Earlier this year it was revealed the number of cases being investigated had more than doubled, with the investigators telling families of the potential victims they were considering corporate and individual manslaughter charges by gross negligence, as well as medical negligence. It led to dozens of relatives of the deceased signing a letter calling for the executive team of the hospital trust to resign. It also asked why the alleged negligent staff were still working and treating patients. One of the cases under investigation is of Lewis Chilcott, 23, who died 39 days after alleged errors made by a surgeon during a tracheostomy, which is said to have led to an infection and 'torrential bleeding'. Simon Chilcott, his father previously said the hospital trust 'has always hidden behind this rare consequence of a [tracheostomy] procedure, the evidence is all there, but they've never once said no, we've got this wrong'. He revealed investigators had told him it would take at least two years for inquiries to be completed and a decision on whether or not to bring charges was made. A mother-of-one from Brighton, Jane, previously told The Telegraph staff had not told her she was being treated for a deadly blood clot following her first operation for an arachnoid cyst and was only made aware of this fact six years later by a whistleblower at the trust who had relayed her case to police. In another case, Tony Mardell, a business owner from West Sussex, said his life has been ruined and he is 'a shell of a person' that needs constant care from his wife and two children after surgeons at the trust allegedly took more than a year to remove a brain tumour after it was first detected. A theme of the investigation has been surgeons refusing to acknowledge their mistakes, sources have said, claiming they had 'God complexes'. Just last month, the NHS trust apologised for errors that led to the death of Richard Harris, 71, who died last July. University Hospitals Sussex NHS Foundation Trust admitted it failed to monitor or operate on a tumour in his nervous system despite doctors recommending this be done. Doctors had not arranged for an urgent MRI scan in 2017 which was needlessly delayed until 2019 when he chased it up. Harris was then diagnosed with a benign schwannoma tumour and recommended for twice-yearly monitoring and surgical intervention, but this did not happen until he returned in 2024 with severe pain. By this point it had become untreatable and he was released to hospice care and died a few weeks later. A spokesman for Sussex Police said it 'has a dedicated team of officers and staff working on Operation Bramber'. 'While the scope of the investigation has not changed, this resource is kept under constant review to ensure it continues to meet the needs of the investigation and to help us identify any possible opportunities to expedite our enquiries, enabling us to provide answers to affected patients and families as swiftly as possible. 'This may lead to additional recruitment, including into administrative roles to support the progress of the investigation. 'Due to the costs associated with this, the force will explore any potential funding streams that could help recuperate some of that cost. This is common practice for an investigation of this nature, which is complex and likely to take some time to complete. 'At the appropriate stage, a formal application for funding may be made to the Home Office.'
Telegraph
02-04-2025
- Health
- Telegraph
NHS trust apologises after man died when it failed to treat tumour
An NHS trust has apologised after a man died when it failed to treat his tumour. Richard Harris, 71, died in July last year after errors by the Royal Sussex County Hospital 's neurosurgery department in Brighton, West Sussex. University Hospitals Sussex NHS Foundation Trust (UHSussex), which runs the hospital, has admitted it failed to monitor or operate on a tumour in his nervous system despite doctors recommending this be done. An internal review of Harris's care found doctors had not arranged a routine MRI scan after he received an urgent referral in 2017. It was not until two years later, in 2019, that he had the scan after he contacted the neurology department himself. Harris was then diagnosed with a benign schwannoma tumour and recommended for twice-yearly monitoring and surgical intervention, The Guardian reported. But the surgery was not arranged and follow-up scans were postponed and cancelled. In 2024, Harris, a former massage therapist, was referred to the neurosurgery department again after experiencing acute pain. The review found there were further delays until his tumour was assessed as cancerous and inoperable. He was released to hospice care and died a few weeks later. 'Possible corporate manslaughter' Harris's family has been told his death was being investigated as possible corporate manslaughter along with 90 other deaths at the hospital's general surgery and neurosurgery departments, the newspaper reported. Sussex Police has launched Operation Bramber to investigate allegations of medical negligence in those departments between 2015 and 2020. The trust apologised to Harris before he died for its failure to arrange the follow-up scans in 2019. 'They seem to be expert at fobbing people off,' said his sister, Jane. 'The way they have treated us mirrors how Richard was treated. We are just so horrified by how Richard's life was cut short.' She added: 'Richard slipped through the net time and time again. It is the whole system there that is the problem. The more you read about his case, the more delays you see.' Katie Urch, the chief medical officer for UHSussex, said: 'Our heartfelt sympathies and apologies go to Richard Harris's family. We have conveyed this to them previously but hope to do so in person in the coming weeks. 'We know that they understandably still have many questions about Mr Harris's care. 'Regrettably, we cannot publicly discuss any of the details of this case at this time, but we will sincerely attempt to address any issues the family raise with us.'
Telegraph
01-04-2025
- Health
- Telegraph
NHS trust apologises after man died when it failed to treat brain tumour
An NHS trust has apologised after a man died when it failed to treat his brain tumour. Richard Harris, 71, died in July last year after errors by the Royal Sussex County Hospital's neurosurgery department in Brighton, West Sussex. University Hospitals Sussex NHS foundation trust (UHSussex), which runs the hospital, has admitted it failed to monitor or operate on a tumour in his nervous system despite doctors recommending this be done. An internal review of Mr Harris's care found doctors had not arranged a routine MRI scan after he received an urgent referral in 2017. It was not until two years later, in 2019, that he had the scan after he contacted the neurology department himself. Mr Harris was then diagnosed with a benign schwannoma tumour and recommended for twice-yearly monitoring and surgical intervention, The Guardian reported. But the surgery was not arranged and follow-up scans were postponed and cancelled. In 2024, Mr Harris, a former massage therapist, was referred to the neurosurgery department again after experiencing acute pain. The review found there were further delays until Mr Harris's tumour was assessed as cancerous and inoperable. He was released to hospice care and died a few weeks later. Mr Harris's family have been told his death is being investigated as possible corporate manslaughter along with 90 other deaths at the hospital's general surgery and neurosurgery departments, the newspaper reported. Sussex Police has launched Operation Bramber to investigate allegations of medical negligence in the hospital's general surgery and neurosurgery departments between 2015 and 2020. The trust apologised to Mr Harris before he died for its failure to arrange the follow-up scans in 2019. 'They seem to be expert at fobbing people off,' said Mr Harris's sister, Jane. 'The way they have treated us mirrors how Richard was treated. We are just so horrified by how Richard's life was cut short.' She added: 'Richard slipped through the net time and time again. It is the whole system there that is the problem. The more you read about his case, the more delays you see.' Katie Urch, the chief medical officer for UHSussex, said: 'Our heartfelt sympathies and apologies go to Richard Harris's family. We have conveyed this to them previously but hope to do so in person in the coming weeks. 'We know that they understandably still have many questions about Mr Harris's care. 'Regrettably, we cannot publicly discuss any of the details of this case at this time, but we will sincerely attempt to address any issues the family raise with us.'
The Guardian
01-04-2025
- Health
- The Guardian
NHS trust apologises as man's tumour death investigated for manslaughter
A troubled NHS trust has apologised to the family of a man who died after a series of potentially fatal delays to treat a tumour, in a case that is being investigated by police as possible corporate manslaughter. Richard Harris, 71, died last July after a series of errors in the neurosurgery department at the Royal Sussex County hospital in Brighton, which is part of University Hospitals Sussex NHS foundation trust (UHSussex). The trust admitted that Harris was 'lost to follow-up' when the hospital repeatedly failed to monitor a tumour in his nervous system, or operate on it, as doctors recommended. An internal review of Harris's care found that doctors failed to arrange a routine MRI scan for him when he was first urgently referred to neurosurgery in 2017. Harris, who was fit and a regular swimmer, only received a scan when he contacted the department again in 2019. The scan picked up a benign schwannoma tumour, which a multidisciplinary team concluded would require regular monitoring, every six months. They also said 'surgical intervention should be advised', the review found. But no surgery was arranged. And the required follow-up scans were postponed and cancelled at a time when internal whistleblowers expressed alarm about high cancellation rates, and repeated and allegedly dangerous failures to follow up patients under the trust's care. Eventually Harris, who had worked as a gardener, delivery driver and massage therapist, was referred to neurosurgery early last year suffering with acute pain. He had to wait weeks to be seen, despite repeatedly pleading with his consultant in emails complaining of 'red-hot poker pain' that was 'scaring me to death'. There were yet further delays in arranging MRI scans, the review found. Months later, the tumour was assessed to be cancerous and inoperable. Harris was discharged to hospice care and died a few weeks later. Sussex police have confirmed to Harris's family that his death is being investigated as possible corporate manslaughter, as part of its expanding Operation Bramber investigation. Police documents seen by the Guardian show that more than 90 deaths in the general surgery and neurosurgery departments are being reviewed as possible manslaughter. Detectives and a clinical panel are examining alleged medical negligence and cover-ups between 2015 and 2021. The allegations were first made by two internal whistleblowers: Krishna Singh, a consultant surgeon, and Mansoor Foroughi, a consultant neurosurgeon, who lost their jobs after raising concerns. Police have explained to Harris's family that his case has been included because, although he died outside the investigation's timeframe, the errors that could have contributed to his death occurred earlier. Before he died, the trust apologised to Harris for its failure to arrange follow-up scans as planned in 2019. Now the trust's internal review has detailed what went wrong and the 'missed opportunities' to correct repeated failures to monitor the tumour. It found the trust had 'systems and process that allowed patients needing active monitoring to be lost to follow-up if not corrected by the patients themselves'. It noted that Harris cancelled a scan in error in 2020, but further scans or appointments were not arranged by the hospital. It even failed to arrange a scan after Harris was picked up in routine review in 2022 and wrongly classified as not requiring monitoring. Additionally, when Harris attended the hospital as an outpatient for three other complaints in 2022 and a physical assault in 2023, his need for a scan was not picked up. The trust also apologised 'unreservedly' to the family for the way Harris's 'humbling' emails about what he said was 'unbearable pain' were ignored. Sign up to Headlines UK Get the day's headlines and highlights emailed direct to you every morning after newsletter promotion Richard's sister, Jane Harris, said the report on her brother's death was 'pathetic'. She said: 'They seem to be expert at fobbing people off. The way they have treated us mirrors how Richard was treated. We are just so horrified by how Richard's life was cut short.' She added: 'Richard slipped through the net time and time again. It is the whole system there that is the problem. The more you read about his case, the more delays you see.' Months before the trust sacked him in December 2021, Foroughi complained about high cancellation rates in the hospital and how failure to follow up with a number of individual patients led to deaths and serious harm. A dossier setting out his concerns said: 'Delays and cancellations of hundreds of operations and OPD [outpatient department] appointments each year has been stressful, demoralising and beyond measure in terms of costs to the patients and their families.' Katie Urch, the chief medical officer for UHSussex, said: 'Our heartfelt sympathies and apologies go to Richard Harris's family. We have conveyed this to them previously, but hope to do so in person in the coming weeks. 'We know that they understandably still have many questions about Mr Harris's care. 'Regrettably, we cannot publicly discuss any of the details of this case at this time, but we will sincerely attempt to address any issues the family raise with us.'
The Guardian
25-02-2025
- Health
- The Guardian
90 deaths at hospital in Brighton being investigated as possible manslaughter
The number of patient deaths being investigated as possible manslaughter at a troubled NHS hospital has more than doubled to 90, the Guardian can reveal. The growing number of allegedly suspicious deaths, up from an initial total of 40, has forced Sussex police to ask the Home Office for extra resources in dealing with its expanding inquiry into University Hospitals Sussex (UHS), known as Operation Bramber. It is examining allegations of medical negligence and cover-up in the general surgery and neurosurgery departments of Brighton's Royal Sussex County hospital, part of UHS, between 2015 and 2021. There are also growing internal concerns within the trust about surgeons who continue to operate at the hospital, despite their alleged negligence being reviewed by police. Earlier this month, a group of anaesthetists asked the trust's medical director for guidance on what to tell patients who inquire about the safety of surgeons about to operate on them. A source at the trust said: 'It's a very valid question. The anaesthetists are in an awkward position of having to anaesthetise the patients before surgery with consultants under suspicion.' There have been calls to suspend some surgeons while police investigate. The source added: 'I think the reason they have been allowed to continue, is that the trust does not want to show they have made any mistakes.' Earlier this month, the Guardian revealed that Sussex police were examining possible corporate and individual manslaughter charges. The force is reviewing 90 deaths and more than 100 cases of serious harm with the help of a team of independent surgeons. One of the consultants who continues to operate at the trust is a neurosurgeon who last week had his practising privileges withdrawn at a local Nuffield private hospital. A spokesperson said this was 'due to a failure to engage in medical assurance governance processes'. There is also internal concern in UHS at the inexperience of the current surgeons operating at the hospital. Only five of the 12 surgeons on the rota for emergency surgery are on the General Medical Council's specialist register, inclusion on which is requirement for a consultant's post. The source said: 'If you have one or two surgeons who are not on the register you can cope, but having a majority not on the register is unheard of because of the level of training and expertise required.' One of the emergency surgeons who is not on the register was responsible for a 'never event' in 2016 when a medical specimen bag and the removed part of a bowel was left inside a patient after hernia operation. UHS has been subject to a series of damning inspection reports, had the highest number of patients waiting a year and a half for care in England, and was last month ranked among the five worst trusts in England. A source close to the investigation said: 'The number of deaths the police are looking at has increased to 90, which is why they are struggling to cope and have asked the Home Office for extra help.' Sussex police refused to comment on the figure, or reveal a breakdown of how the deaths were divided between alleged mistakes in the neurosurgery and general surgery departments. A spokesperson said: 'This is an active and ongoing investigation and we will not be providing specific details around case numbers at this time.' They added: 'The medical experts will report on their findings and their evaluation will be considered alongside information obtained from our police inquiries to determine whether cases will be taken forward in the investigation, and if so which ones. Those that do not currently meet a criminal threshold will be withdrawn, and this will be communicated to patients and families directly by the investigation team.' Katie Urch, UHS's chief medical officer, said the trust's surgeons were 'highly skilled clinicians who are trained and qualified to perform complex, life-saving procedures every day'. She added: 'Our teams are subject to rigorous scrutiny, and we actively encourage colleagues to speak up and take action if they believe we could ever do more to protect and care for our patients. 'While every treatment and operation carries some level of risk, our teams are dedicated to delivering the safest and highest-quality care. We are committed to being open, listening and continually learning from every experience to keep improving the care we provide.'
