Home / Crime and Justice / Doctor claims Letby & his case: Both scapegoated?
Doctor claims Letby & his case: Both scapegoated?
24 Jan
Summary
- Consultant claims he and Lucy Letby were scapegoated.
- Letby used incident reporting tool to file safety complaints.
- Medical evidence used to convict Letby deemed 'farcical'.
Dr. Martyn Pitman, a former consultant obstetrician, has drawn parallels between his own dismissal and the case of convicted nurse Lucy Letby, asserting that both were "scapegoated" for raising concerns about patient care.
Dr. Pitman lost his position at Royal Hampshire County Hospital after two decades, believing it was retribution for whistleblowing on midwifery issues. He contends that Letby, who is imprisoned for murdering seven infants and attempting to kill seven more at Countess of Chester's neonatal unit between June 2015 and June 2016, faced a similar fate.
Letby had utilized the Datix system to report safety and care failures, later filing a formal grievance. Dr. Pitman also raised alarm bells about patient safety and understaffing at his hospital starting in March 2019, leading to his dismissal in March 2023.
He described the medical evidence used to convict Letby as "farcical" and "unsafe," a sentiment echoed by international medical experts who found no evidence of deliberate harm to babies. Prosecutors had relied heavily on circumstantial evidence and probability analyses.
Dr. Pitman's own whistleblowing claims of retaliatory victimisation against Hampshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust were dismissed by an employment tribunal in October 2023, which cited his communication style rather than his disclosures.
He fears that the legal system and authorities may resist exonerating Letby due to the complex implications for medical negligence claims and potential prosecutions of managers and consultants. Dr. Pitman hopes the Criminal Cases Review Commission (CCRC) will refer Letby's case for appeal, potentially revolutionizing how such complex medical cases are handled in the future, including jury selection for medically intricate trials.
Despite the CCRC's ongoing review, Dr. Pitman expressed concern about potential delays. He also noted that the Letby case has reportedly deterred applicants from entering nursing, particularly in critical specialities, highlighting the precarious position of whistleblowers within the NHS.
