Lucy Letby: Doctors who raised alarm were accused of ‘harassing and victimising’ killer nurse, says ex-hospital boss
The former boss of the hospital where Lucy Letby killed seven babies says she fears it is “more likely than not” that failures of management to deal with complaints about the nurse led to lives being lost needlessly.
Dr Susan Gilby joined the Countess of Chester Hospital as medical director and deputy chief executive in August 2018, a few weeks after Letby was arrested.
Letby, 33, was convicted of murdering seven infants and attempting to kill six others at the hospital’s neonatal unit between June 2015 and June 2016. She will die in prison after being handed 14 whole-life orders.
Concerns about the serial killer were not addressed for months before she was finally taken off frontline duties and given a clerical role in June 2016.
Consultants who raised concerns about Letby as far back as 2015 have said babies could have been saved if hospital management had listened and acted sooner.
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Letby: Why were warnings ignored?
Both the neonatal unit head consultant, Dr Stephen Brearey, and another consultant Dr Ravi Jayaram have spoken of hospital executives’ reluctance to involve the police for fear of damaging the trust’s reputation. Officers were only contacted in 2017.
Speaking to Sky News, Dr Gilby said she commissioned a review and her “reflections on talking to the paediatricians, not just Steve and Ravi… and having looked at the evidence, is that there was certainly a possibility [that management failures to deal with complaints led to lives being needlessly lost]”.
She added: “But it needs to be an external and objective review, looking at all the evidence, and giving people the right of reply to that evidence, that will come to that conclusion, and not for individuals such as myself.
“From a personal point of view, and obviously speaking more as a mother than a doctor or a senior leader in the NHS, it’s my greatest fear and I think it’s more likely than not that that will turn out to be the case.
“I sincerely hope that it isn’t.”
Dr Gilby also said there should be a full public inquiry, as per some parents’ wishes, as a statutory inquiry “would have the powers to compel people to give evidence”.
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Dr Brearey first raised Letby’s association with an increase in baby collapses in June 2015.
He told The Guardian that deaths could arguably have been avoided from as early as February 2016 if executives had “responded appropriately” to an urgent meeting request from concerned doctors.
Dr Jayaram continued to express concerns to management as more sudden and unexpected collapses followed.
Read Sky News coverage of Lucy Letby here
Hospital staff ‘certain’ Letby would not be charged
Dr Gilby said that after she joined the hospital, there was “a very strongly held opinion, that appeared to me was held by everyone, that the police had made an error in arresting Letby”.
“They were certain there would be no charges,” she added. “And doctors who had persisted in raising concerns about Letby… were partly responsible for the arrest of a young woman who they had victimised and harassed over quite some time.
“I found that surprising because I knew that the police would have had substantial evidence that they would have wanted to put in front of her [Letby] if they seemed fit to make an arrest.”
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‘Lucy Letby has destroyed our lives’
Detectives are continuing to review the care of 4,000 babies admitted to hospital while Letby was working as a neonatal nurse.
The period covers her spell at the Countess of Chester from January 2012 to the end of June 2016, and includes two work placements at Liverpool Women’s Hospital in 2012 and 2015.
Dr Gilby said despite Letby’s convictions and the end of the criminal trial at Manchester Crown Court “we’re not quite at the point where we can really say there is closure”.
She added: “The parents and others have questions about the circumstances around the events on the unit and how the crimes were allowed to go on for so long. So there is still a long road ahead in terms of getting answers to those questions.”
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Dr Gilby resigned as chief executive of the Countess of Chester Hospital NHS Foundation Trust in December 2022.
Jane Tomkinson, acting chief executive officer at the Countess of Chester Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, said: “Following the trial of former neonatal nurse Lucy Letby, the Trust welcomes the announcement of an independent inquiry by the Department of Health and Social Care.
“In addition, the trust will be supporting the ongoing investigation by Cheshire Police. Due to ongoing legal considerations, it would not be appropriate for the Trust to make any further comment at this time.”
Two pro-Palestinian demonstrators have thrown red powder on Tower Bridge – just moments before leading runners in the London Marathon went past.
The protesters were arrested on suspicion of causing a public nuisance and remain in custody, said the Metropolitan Police.
A video shared by Youth Demand, which is calling for a trade embargo on Israel, shows two people jumping over a barrier that separates spectators from the race course.
The pair, wearing t-shirts that say “Youth Demand: Stop Arming Israel”, are then seen standing in the middle of the road on the bridge.
Pic: LNP
They throw red powder in the air as an official marathon car goes past displaying the race time.
A motorbike with a cameraman on board continues along the route, while a second motorbike stops and one of the riders gets off and pushes the pair out of the way, just before the men’s elite runners pass.
Several police officers then jump over the barrier and detain the pair, the footage shows.
There appeared to be no impact on the marathon.
More than 56,000 participants were expected to take part in the 26.2-mile race through the capital.
Sabastian Sawe of Kenya won the men’s elite race in a time of two hours, two minutes and 27 seconds, while Ethiopia’s Tigst Assefa shattered the women’s-only world record in two hours, 15 minutes and 50 seconds.
Assefa beat the previous best of two hours, 16 minutes and 16 seconds set last year in London by Kenyan Peres Jepchirchir.
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Pic: LNP
The Metropolitan Police said in a statement: “At around 10.38am, two protesters from Youth Demand jumped over barriers at Tower Bridge and threw red paint on to the road.
“Marathon event staff intervened to remove the protesters from the path of the men’s elite race which was able to pass unobstructed.”
The force added that they were “quickly supported by police officers who arrested the protesters on suspicion of causing a public nuisance”.
The Met said the paint “appeared to be chalk-based” and was not expected to “present a hazard to runners yet to pass this point”.
Counter-terrorism police are investigating after an incident involving a crossbow and a firearm left two women injured in Leeds.
Police were called to Otley Road at 2.47pm on Saturday to reports of a “serious incident involving a man seen with weapons”, West Yorkshire Police said.
Officers arrived at the scene to find two women injured – and a 38-year-old man with a self-inflicted injury. All three were taken to hospital, with the man held under arrest, but their injuries are not believed to be life-threatening.
“Two weapons have been recovered from the scene, which were a crossbow and a firearm,” Counter Terrorism Policing North East said in a statement.
The incident happened on the ‘Otley Run’ pub crawl, with one venue saying it was closed for the evening due to “unforeseen circumstances”.
Officers guard one of the crime scenes
Officers inside the cordon in Leeds
Counter Terrorism Policing’s statement added: “Due to the circumstances surrounding the incident, Counter Terrorism Policing North East have taken responsibility for leading the investigation with the support of West Yorkshire Police.
“Extensive enquiries continue to establish the full circumstances and explore any potential motivation.”
Home Secretary Yvette Cooper described it as a “serious violent incident” and said she was being kept updated by police.
“Thank you to the police and emergency services for their swift response,” she said. “My thoughts are with the victims and all those affected by this attack.”
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