Latest news with #neonatalunit
Telegraph
02-08-2025
- Health
- Telegraph
Senior nurse warned of ‘nightmare' baby-killing bacteria in Lucy Letby unit
A senior nurse at Lucy Letby 's hospital warned she was facing her 'worst nightmare' after deadly bacteria was found on several taps in the 'over-capacity' baby unit, leaked emails show. Eirian Powell, the manager of the neonatal unit at the Countess of Chester Hospital, argued the department was 'taking too many risks' and 'compromising patient safety'. The email was sent to senior managers in December 2015, the middle of the period in which there was a spike of baby deaths at the unit, for which Letby was convicted of murder. Former Estates Management staff at the hospital also told The Telegraph that nappy pads were placed in the ceiling of the unit to prevent sewage leaking through. The Telegraph has previously reported that the bacterium Pseudomonas aeruginosa had colonised taps in the nurseries of the neonatal unit, including intensive care. But the extent of the outbreak has only now come to light through the leaked emails. Ms Powell wrote the email after discovering that a second sink in her unit had tested positive. Copying in Tony Chambers, the trust's chief executive, she wrote: 'We are currently over-capacity and this is my worst nightmare. 'I feel that we are taking too many risks and compromising patient safety. I want filters put on all taps until we have the ALL clear.' A risk register seen by The Telegraph shows that filters had to be kept on the taps for months indicating that the hospital struggled to eliminate the bug. The problem was labelled as 'high risk' on the register, which also warned there was a 'high risk' from ongoing doctor shortages in the unit. Records show that the taps in the baby unit were fitted with bacterial filters in an attempt to deal with the issue. But a former member of the Estates Management team told The Telegraph there were regular call-outs to the unit when the filters became detached from the taps, increasing the risk of infection. He said he was concerned about the safety of the vulnerable babies in the unit, believing the ward should have been shut down until the bacteria risk had been eliminated. Speaking anonymously, he said: 'I could not understand why the most vulnerable patients in the hospital were being cared for in that unit which was not fit for purpose. I thought it was dangerous. Everyone in Estates did.' He also described how there were regular call outs to deal with foul water from the pipes which carried macerator waste and sewage above the unit. When there were blockages the waste would seep out of the pipes and through the ceiling tiles in the unit. The team was forced to put multiple absorbent nappy pads in the ceiling area to stop any waste from dripping down The former worker also said the sinks were often blocked, adding that the release of the blockage 'could be explosive with big splashes of foul water and the cleaners would not be on hand immediately'. 'I'd unblock a sink using a plunger with babies still in the room. All of the lads would raise issues. It was an ongoing battle of firefighting with leaks and blockages,' he said. Mark McDonald, Letby's barrister, said: 'This is yet another indication as to why this unit was not fit for purpose. 'It has now become clear that there is a strong argument that Lucy was a scapegoat for a dysfunctional, under-resourced and understaffed neonatal department.' The jury was never told about the bacterial outbreak or the full extent of the sewage problems on the unit, while the new email and full risk register were never disclosed to Letby's defence team. At Letby's trial, the prosecution claimed that testing had ruled out infections in the babies, but during the Thirlwall Inquiry – which is looking into how the killing might have been stopped – Dr Susie Holt said it was 'difficult to eliminate them'. Consultant Dr Murthy Saladi also told the inquiry that before the finger had been pointed at Letby, he was concerned that the baby deaths and collapses were due to an outbreak of the pseudomonas in the unit. Dr Rachel Lambie, a former paediatric registrar at the Countess of Chester, also told the inquiry that she was initially concerned that two indictment babies had been geographically close to each other in the unit and may have picked up the same infection. She said she had 'personally raised' the issue of an environmental toxin and that pseudomonas was 'being considered'. Pseudomonas is known to be lethal to vulnerable babies. In 2012, a premature baby died and 12 others needed treatment at Southmead Hospital in Bristol after an outbreak of a water-borne bacterium. Three premature babies also died after contracting the bug at the Royal Jubilee Maternity Hospital in Belfast in January 2012. In that case, sink taps were found to be the source of infection. A baby had died from the same infection six weeks earlier in Derry. Letby is serving 15 whole life terms for the murder of seven infants and the attempted murder of seven more, but since her conviction dozens of medical and statistical experts have voiced concerns about the evidence. The safety of Letby's convictions is currently under consideration by the Criminal Cases Review Commission, which investigates potential miscarriages of justice in England. A spokesman at the Countess of Chester Hospital NHS Foundation Trust said: 'Due to the Thirlwall Inquiry and the ongoing police investigations, it would not be appropriate to comment further at this time.' A new documentary, Lucy Letby: Beyond Reasonable Doubt?, is being aired on ITV1 and ITVX on Sunday at 10.20pm. The show's producers said: 'After two trials, nurse Lucy Letby was found guilty of killing seven newborn babies and attempting to kill seven others in one of the most shocking murder cases in British history. 'Described as a cold-blooded, calculating killer, Letby was said to have used her trusted role to cause catastrophic harm to the most vulnerable newborn babies 'So why are a growing number of expert voices now questioning the evidence used to convict her? This programme explores the views of a team of international scientists who say the prosecution case simply doesn't stand up to scrutiny.'
Sky News
02-07-2025
- Sky News
More criminal charges being considered over baby deaths at Lucy Letby hospitals
The Crown Prosecution Service has said it is considering whether to bring further criminal charges over the deaths of babies at hospitals where Lucy Letby worked. The CPS said it had received "a full file of evidence from Cheshire Constabulary asking us to consider further allegations in relation to deaths and non-fatal collapses of babies at the Countess of Chester Hospital and Liverpool Women's Hospital". "We will now carefully consider the evidence to determine whether any further criminal charges should be brought," it added. "As always, we will make that decision independently, based on the evidence and in line with our legal test." Letby, 35, was found guilty of murdering seven children and attempting to murder seven more between June 2015 and June 2016 while working in the neonatal unit of the Countess of Chester Hospital. arrested on suspicion of gross negligence manslaughter. Please refresh the page for the latest version.
ABC News
01-07-2025
- Health
- ABC News
Senior staff at English hospital where Lucy Letby worked arrested on suspicion of gross negligence manslaughter
Three senior managers at the hospital where former nurse Lucy Letby murdered babies have been arrested on suspicion of gross negligence manslaughter. Letby, 35, is serving life in jail after being found guilty of murdering seven newborns and attempting to murder eight more between June 2015 and June 2016 while working in the neonatal unit of the Countess of Chester Hospital in northern England. The nurse has maintained her innocence throughout but has been refused permission to appeal against her convictions. She has been told she will never be released. Following the trial, British police began to investigate possible corporate manslaughter offences at the hospital, an inquiry that was later widened to consider if individuals might be guilty of gross negligence manslaughter. Detective Superintendent Paul Hughes, who is leading the investigation, said three unnamed members of the hospital's senior leadership team were arrested on Monday, local time. They have since been released on police bail pending further inquires. "Both the corporate manslaughter and gross negligence manslaughter elements of the investigation are continuing and there are no set timescales for these," Mr Hughes said in a statement. He added that the police investigation into whether Letby had committed more crimes at the hospital and at another unit where she had previously worked was ongoing. Cheshire Police said the case did not have any impact on Letby's 2023 convictions for murder and attempted murder. Letby, who testified that she never harmed a child, has continued to proclaim her innocence, and support for her has grown as legal and scientific experts have questioned the circumstantial and statistical evidence used at her trial. A panel of international medical experts disputed the evidence against her and her lawyer said she was wrongly convicted. A judge who oversaw a public inquiry seeking accountability of staff and management at the hospital was expected to publish her findings later this year. Justice Kathryn Thirlwall said at the outset of the inquiry that she would not review Letby's conviction, but would take a deeper look into how failures led to babies being repeatedly harmed at the hospital. As that inquiry was underway earlier this year, an independent panel of more than a dozen medical experts issued a report that found no sign of a crime and concluded natural causes or bad medical care led to the demise of each of the newborns. "In summary, then, ladies and gentlemen, we did not find any murders," Dr Shoo Lee, a retired neonatologist from Canada, said at a London news conference in February. Letby's lawyers and three former executives at the hospital unsuccessfully petitioned Judge Thirlwall to halt the public inquiry after the medical panel released its findings. Letby, who lost two bids to appeal her convictions, now has her case before the Criminal Case Review Commission, which reviews possible miscarriages of justice, which could lead to another shot at an appeal. The Crown Prosecution Service has said two juries have convicted Letby and three appellate judges have rejected her arguments that the prosecution expert evidence is flawed. Reuters/AP
RNZ News
01-07-2025
- Health
- RNZ News
UK police arrest three hospital managers in Lucy Letby investigation
By Michael Holden , Reuters Lucy Letby on August 17, 2023 when she was arrested in Manchester. Photo: AFP / Cheshire Constabulary / Handout UK police say they have arrested three senior hospital managers on suspicion of gross negligence manslaughter as part of investigations into nurse Lucy Letby, who was convicted two years ago of killing babies in a neonatal unit . Letby, 35, is serving life in jail after being found guilty of murdering seven newborns and attempting to murder eight more between June 2015 and June 2016 while working at the Countess of Chester Hospital (CoCH) in northern England. Letby, Britain's worst serial child killer of modern times, has maintained her innocence throughout but has been refused permission to appeal against her convictions. She has been told she would never be released. Following her jailing, police began to investigate possible corporate manslaughter offences at the hospital, an inquiry that was later widened to consider if individuals might be guilty of gross negligence manslaughter. Detective Superintendent Paul Hughes, who is leading the investigation, said three unnamed members of the hospital's senior leadership team had been arrested on Monday. They were subsequently released on bail, pending further inquires. "Both the corporate manslaughter and gross negligence manslaughter elements of the investigation are continuing and there are no set time scales for these," Hughes said in a statement on Tuesday (UK time), adding that this did not impact Letby's convictions. Hughes said a police investigation was continuing into whether Letby had committed more crimes at the hospital and at another unit where she had previously worked. Since she was jailed, some lawmakers, medical experts and other specialists have publicly challenged the prosecution evidence that was used to find her guilty. The Criminal Cases Review Commission, which examines potential miscarriages of justice, is considering an application from Letby's legal team, and last month, former health minister Jeremy Hunt said the case should be urgently re-examined. Letby's lawyer Mark McDonald said in a statement that the police announcement came at a sensitive time. "Despite this, the concerns many have raised will not go away, and we will continue to publicly discuss them," McDonald said. Kate Blackwell, a lawyer for the hospital's senior managers, told a public inquiry examining how the murders were able to take place that there were other explanations for the deaths which needed to be considered. The managers strongly denied accusations they "deliberately and knowingly" protected a murderer, Blackwell said. Police have previously said scepticism about the case was based on partial knowledge of the facts presented to the courts. The findings of the public inquiry are due to be published early next year after the chairman rejected calls for her work to be paused. -Reuters
Yahoo
01-07-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Three members of Lucy Letby hospital's senior leadership team arrested
Three managers at the hospital where Lucy Letby worked have been arrested on suspicion of gross negligence manslaughter. They were in senior roles at the Countess of Chester Hospital in 2015 and 2016 and have been bailed pending further enquiries, Cheshire Constabulary said. Their names have not been made public. , 35, was found guilty of murdering seven children and attempting to murder seven more between June 2015 and June 2016 while working in the hospital's neonatal unit. Detective Superintendent Paul Hughes explained that gross negligent manslaughter focuses on the "action or inaction of individuals". There is also an investigation into corporate manslaughter at the hospital, which began in October 2023. That focuses on "senior leadership and their decision-making", Mr Hughes said. The intention there is to determine whether any "criminality has taken place concerning the response to the increased levels of fatalities". The scope was widened to include gross negligence manslaughter in March of this year. Mr Hughes said it is "important to note" that this latest development "does not impact on the convictions of Lucy Letby for multiple offences of murder and attempted murder". He added: "Both the corporate manslaughter and gross negligence manslaughter elements of the investigation are continuing and there are no set timescales for these. "Our investigation into the deaths and non-fatal collapses of babies at the neo-natal units of both the Countess of Chester Hospital and the Liverpool Women's Hospital between the period of 2012 to 2016 is also ongoing." Read more from Sky News: Earlier this year, lawyers for Lucy Letby called for the suspension of the inquiry into the events surrounding her crimes, claiming there was that her convictions were unsafe. In February, an international panel of neonatologists and paediatric specialists told reporters that poor medical care and natural causes were the reasons for the collapses and deaths. Their evidence has been passed to the Criminal Cases Review Commission (CCRC), which investigates potential miscarriages of justice, and Letby's legal team hopes her case will be referred back to the Court of Appeal.
