Patients at risk without better protection for whistleblowers, says ex-NHS hospitals chief | NHS

Patient safety is at risk without better protection for NHS whistleblowers, according to a former health service chair who claims he was forced from his job after raising concerns about reviews into preventable baby deaths.

Maxwell Mclean, the former chair of the Bradford Teaching Hospitals NHS foundation trust, said his treatment made “an absolute mockery of the freedom to speak up” in the NHS.

“This isn’t just about me. This kind of failure to be held to account is a danger to our community,” said Mclean. “It is genuinely in the public interest that a chair is supported when they try to hold a trust’s CEO to account. Because the consequence if they don’t is a danger to patient safety.”

Mclean claims he raised a number of “alarming” issues at the trust, including significant delays investigating neonatal deaths and the neglect of a staff member who was formally reported to be at risk of suicide.

This led to an independent investigation that corroborated some of his concerns. Mclean claimed that shortly after this review was completed he was forced to resign by the trust’s other board members. He is pursuing a whistleblowing claim at an employment tribunal in Leeds later this month.

“My contract was unlawfully terminated by a board that should not have met and did so in secret, so it was entirely against the constitution. And they were doing it in order to cover up very serious failings,” said Mclean, who is fundraising to help cover his legal costs.

“It has had a massive impact on my career. I have a reputation for thoroughness and fairness.”

Mclean was chair of the trust for almost five years from 2019, following a 30-year career at West Yorkshire police. In 2021, he raised concerns about the length of time being taken to investigate the deaths of newborn children at the trust – he said some reviews were not concluded for 14 months, despite NHS England guidelines stating they should be done within 60 days.

Some of his concerns related to three serious neonatal incidents that occurred in the space of 12 days in April 2021, in which two babies died and a third was left with a long-term disability.

Other issues Mclean raised included the hospital ignoring a report from a union that a staff member was at risk of suicide, and “a refusal to implement vital health inequality strategies”.

He said he pushed for an independent investigation into his concerns, which reported back on 19 September 2023. Two weeks later, he said he was forced to resign, and claims he was told at the time it was because of him persistently raising issues.

His resignation letter stated: “This was a cover-up and I will not be party to that. I know things can go wrong. But I will not work with a chief executive officer who cannot accept that things have to change and that improvements have to be made. This is appalling service to those patients and public of Bradford who rightly should expect better.”

Last year, an internal investigation found that two babies died in Bradford Royal infirmary’s neonatal intensive care unit during a bacterial outbreak caused by lapses in hygiene practices in 2021, with the report concluding the deaths could have been prevented. At least one family is taking legal action against the trust.

Naz Shah, the Labour MP for Bradford West, last year said the deaths showed a “clear failure of leadership” at the trust.

The last Care Quality Commission inspection rated the trust’s neonatal services as outstanding, and its maternity services as requires improvement.

A spokesperson for Bradford Teaching Hospitals NHS foundation trust said: “We would again like to express our sincere condolences to the families affected for their sad loss.

“Following an investigation into the circumstances surrounding the babies’ deaths we completed the actions identified, including putting in place additional infection prevention and control measures, increasing staff levels, and training more of our neonatal nurses to provide intensive care.

“A recent assurance review of our neonatal services carried out by NHS England and the West Yorkshire NHS ICB [integrated care board] concluded that the service provides safe, high-quality care.”

The trust declined to comment on Mclean’s whistleblowing claim.