Nurse's Whistleblowing Warnings Ignored Before Baby Deaths

In August 2023, Lucy Letby was convicted of the murders of seven infants and the attempted murders of seven others between June 2015 and June 2016 at the Countess of Chester Hospital. However, new revelations suggest Letby had been raising the alarm about poor care of babies in the hospital where she worked, shortly before she was removed from her duties.

Internal management forms at the hospital have revealed how Letby formally highlighted apparent failures of care in her neonatal unit. She reported incidents of babies suffering sudden collapses and the lack of necessary medical resources to deal with emergencies. Letby's complaints were investigated by a group that included one of the doctors who later raised questions about whether she was "purposely harming babies."

Despite Letby's efforts to improve care, she was arrested in 2018, and her convictions were based on contested statistical probabilities and disputed theories. Experts have now concluded that no murders were committed, and the babies' deaths were likely due to poor care or natural causes. Letby's lawyer claims senior medics had targeted her in revenge for her whistleblowing.

An official inquiry has been launched to examine the conduct of all staff and the experiences of bereaved parents at the hospital. The revelations have raised serious questions about the safety of Letby's convictions and the hospital's handling of the situation.