Health Secretary Shona Robison has been urged to order the immediate reinstatement of two surgeons suspended from their jobs at the north-east’s flagship hospital.
A group of 21 distinguished medical professionals – all with links to NHS Grampian – have also asked her to launch a judge-led inquiry into the management of the troubled health board.
Lead campaigner Dr Donnie Ross said it should focus on the use of suspensions and other disciplinary measures taken against medical staff who have raised concerns about governance in the last few years.
He said action was needed to stop the “catastrophic rot” within the organisation which had been starkly highlighted by the suspension of the Queen’s Surgeon in Scotland, Professor Zygmunt Krukowski, and his general surgery colleague Wendy Craig from Aberdeen Royal Infirmary.
Dr Ross, 71, who was NHS Grampian’s medical director from 1994-2001 and retired in 2003, claimed the “toxic atmosphere” at ARI was linked to the “haemorrhage of irreplaceable staff” and recruitment difficulties.
The medics penned their open letter to Ms Robison after a public campaign was launched to reinstate the surgeons and NHS Grampian refused to release in full a Royal College of Surgeons (RCS) England review of general surgery at ARI.
Recommendations were published but the complete findings – which could reveal why the two consultants were suspended – have never been made public and the authorities have sought to block publication at every turn.
The letter has been signed by retired consultant surgeon Jetmund Engeset who used to be responsible for the team which cares for the royal family when they are admitted for treatment while at Balmoral Castle.
The signatories, who are either retired or working elsewhere, said they had very “grave concerns” about how the health board was dealing with staffing issues which “appeared to go completely against the clear public interest of effective and stable service delivery”.
The letter claimed there had been a series of suspensions of senior consultants at ARI in recent years after the doctors involved raised concerns about management or patient safety.
It stated: “Most regrettably the recent suspension of Professor Zyg Krukowski and his colleague Dr Wendy Craig, indicates that this process of suspension and referral to the General Medical Council as a substitute for proper management still appears to remain the method of choice for dealing with anyone who dares to raise a contrary opinion.
“Both of these surgeons are widely recognised for the excellence of their work, their contribution to medical knowledge and their commitment to their patients and to the NHS.”
The letter said Mr Krukowski’s skills and dedication were appreciated by his colleagues and patients alike and it was “no accident” that he was surgeon to the Queen.
“To suspend people of this calibre would need to be justified by either clinical incompetence or criminal act,” it added.
The letter said that while the details of the serious allegations made against the surgeons were not known, it was doubtful there was any justification for depriving patients of their services.
“Allied to the haemorrhage of irreplaceable staff, the recruitment and long-term retention of first-class staff have become next to impossible, as a consequence of the toxic atmosphere created in the hospital of which we used to be so proud,” it added.
“We call for two immediate actions to stop this catastrophic rot.
“Firstly, we call for the reinstatement of Professor Krukowski and Dr Craig so that they can return to the service of patients immediately.
“Secondly, we call for an urgent and wide-ranging review of medical management in NHS Grampian, focussing particularly on the use of suspensions and other disciplinary measures taken against medical staff in the last few years.”
‘Doctors must be valued’
Health Secretary Shona Robison has been told that doctors must be properly treated and valued.
An open letter signed by medical professionals, who described themselves as patients, said NHS Grampian must deal with their concerns appropriately.
It stated: “This means that clinical managers must return to proper negotiation and discussion as a means of resolving ‘difficult’ organisational and interpersonal issues.
“Rather than consistently using suspension, with or without General Medical Council referral, as a convenient means of neutralising ‘difficult’ people.”
The open letter claimed that whistleblowers had been left “isolated and dislocated from their work and subjected to damaging psychological pressure.
The medical professions said they had hoped the health board’s fortunes would have changed following the departure of chairman Bill Howatson, chief executive Richard Carey and former medical director Roelf Dijkhuizen last year.
NHS Grampian bosses have refused to make any comment about calls to immediately reinstate Professor Zygmunt Krukowski and Dr Wendy Craig.
A spokeswoman said: “We cannot – and will not – discuss matters involving individual members of staff.
“We have been subject to reviews by Healthcare Improvement Scotland (HIS) and the Royal College of Surgeons of England (RCSE).
“These reports found issues with leadership and management, culture and behaviour, accountability and governance within NHS Grampian.”
The spokeswoman said the board had accepted all of the report’s recommendations.
“We acknowledge this has been a challenging time for NHS Grampian but firmly believe we are making good progress in addressing the issues raised,” she added.
“The HIS review did not raise any consistent or widespread concerns about patient safety or about the quality of care across NHS Grampian.
“We continue to fully support staff who raise patient safety concerns and investigate each case thoroughly.”
Who are the 21 medical experts?
The open letter signatories are:
Dr Donnie Ross, retired medical director at NHS Grampian.
Diane Smith, patient of Prof Krukowski and Ms Craig.
Norman Matheson, retired consultant surgeon.
Jetmund Engeset, retired consultant surgeon.
Peter Brunt, retired consultant physician.
Matthew Koruth, retired consultant surgeon.
Kevin Jennings, retired consultant cardiologist.
C C Smith, retired consultant physician.
Sheila Calder, retired consultant psychiatrist.
Uttiya Bandyopadhyay, associate specialist.
Maggie Brooks, consultant radiologist.
Peter Thorpe, consultant radiologist.
John V Forrester, retired professor of Ophthalmology.
Noemi Lois, professor of ophthalmology at Queen’s University, Belfast.
Augusto Azuaro-Blanco, professor of ophthalmology at Queen’s University, Belfast.
Malcolm LeMay, retired consultant ophthalmologist.
Ehab Abdelkader, consultant ophthalmologist.
Sumithra Hewage, consultant orthodontist.
Hatem Atta, retired consultant ophthalmologist.
Elizabeth Gray, retired consultant pathologist.
George Smith, retired consultant anaesthetist.
Tom Sinclair, retired consultant physician.