I worked alongside murderer Shipman (From Worcester News)

I worked alongside murderer Shipman

12:30pm Thursday 18th March 2010 in

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A HEALTH boss who used to work alongside serial killer Dr Harold Shipman says staff must report on poor standards of care if they are to stop patient deaths.

Paul Bates, chief executive of NHS Worcestershire, was discussing the failings of the Mid Staffordshire NHS Foundation Trust when he mentioned he knew personally and worked with the mass murderer, who may have killed as many as 250 people, for more than three years.

At the time Mr Bates was working as the chief executive of the family health authority in Tameside and Shipman was the secretary of Tameside’s general medical council, 10 years before the doctor’s crimes came to light.

He also helped the authorities with their investigation into the killings once they were exposed.

Mr Bates was also part of a team of senior officials sent as part of a recovery team to Grantham Hospital over the Beverley Allitt affair.

Serial killer Beverley Allitt, dubbed the Angel of Death, worked as a nurse at Grantham Hospital, murdering four children and injuring five others, usually by injecting the child with potassium chloride or with insulin.

Mr Bates mentioned the previous scandals as he gave his response to the Francis Report into deaths and other failings at Stafford Hospital, run by the Mid Staffordshire NHS Foundation Trust.

The NHS nationwide has been asked by the Government to look closely at the report by Robert Francis QC last month so similar failings do not happen at other trusts.

Mr Bates, who spoke at a meeting of NHS Worcestershire on Wednesday, said: “I worked for Harold Shipman for three years and I was part of the recovery team sent into Grantham Hospital. Why do we sometimes miss the obvious? ‘I’m stepping over bodies here. Why didn’t I notice I am stepping over bodies’.

In every one of those major scandals, that’s the common theme. Why didn’t anyone notice the obvious?”

The Francis report, published on Wednesday, February 24, called on NHS trusts to listen more closely to patients and families.

Sandra Rote, director of clinical development and executive nurse lead, described the report as “heart-rending” and recommended that all members of the board read the full report and digest its 18 recommendations.

She also stressed the importance of NHS managers walking around wards regularly to assess the quality of patient care.

The board report calls for high-quality professional training, regular reviews of the health service, better handling of complaints, more openness with better protection for any member of staff who raises concerns and said patient welfare should be the top priority of staff.

The organisation plans to organise a workshop for the leaders of NHS Worcestershire, the Worcestershire Acute Hospitals NHS Trust and the Mental Health Partnership NHS Trust to look in more detail about how to respond to findings about Mid Staffordshire.