Hospital whistleblower dismissed as ‘head of nothing’, inquiry told

A microbiologist working at a hospital at the centre of infection concerns was told she was “head of nothing” when she tried to blow the whistle on patient safety issues, an inquiry has heard.

Dr Christine Peters, who started work as a consultant microbiologist at Queen Elizabeth University Hospital (QEUH) in Glasgow in 2014, told the Scottish Hospitals Inquiry that in October 2017 she used the hospital’s whistleblowing procedure to report long-running concerns about patient safety, which she felt were not being properly addressed.

The issues included, her statement to the inquiry said, “air quality, water contamination, repeated water ingress, chilled beam units, unsealed ceilings, and air sampling results which suggested fungal and bacterial contamination”.

She also had specific concerns about the safety of wards used for vulnerable patients, such as those receiving bone marrow transplants.

The inquiry is currently investigating the construction of the QEUH campus (pictured) in Glasgow, which includes the Royal Hospital for Children, and it was launched in the wake of deaths linked to infections, including that of 10-year-old Milly Main.

The inquiry heard on Thursday that Dr Peters repeatedly tried to raise her concerns with managers since first becoming aware of problems in 2014, but in 2017 after failing to get “traction” she felt whistleblowing was the “only course of action” left.

She explained that after submitting her report she was invited to a meeting containing a “galaxy of individuals” from senior management.

In her statement to the inquiry she said: “I was intimidated by the large number of very senior board employees present. I had expected a smaller group.

“The tone of the meeting was set when (board director) Dr (Jennifer) Armstrong cut short my introduction.

“I said I was head of department at QEUH for microbiology, which was the title (her predecessor) Professor (Alistair) Leanord had used for the same position.

“She said ‘You are head of nothing. Brian (Jones) is head of service, just to be clear’. I found this rude, unnecessary, and belittling.”

During the meeting, she said, her concerns were effectively dismissed, with one individual responding angrily to her suggestion that positive pressure ventilation lobby (PPVL) rooms in the new hospital were not built to national standards.

She also said it was “striking” that during a discussion of water testing, no reference was made to two third-party reports on water quality at the hospital, one from 2015 and the other “at some point” in late 2017.

She said the fact this work had been commissioned meant “there could not be assurance on the water system… but we were given absolute assurance”.

The inquiry was shown the ensuing whistleblowing report, which was based on interviews with a number of members of management but no infection control doctors (ICDs).

It found Dr Peters’s concerns were “real but had already been dealt with in the main with action plans for the rest” – which Dr Peters told the inquiry she disagreed with.

The report also contained a number of criticisms of Dr Peters herself, including that she found it “difficult to accept the balance of risk”, that she “does not accept being part of a team and listening to the views of others”, and that her communication style and “persistent stream of emails” caused “great anxiety to colleagues”.

When asked by Craig Connal KC, senior counsel to the inquiry, whether she agreed, Dr Peters said: “I sent a lot of emails, as you can see, and as far as I’m concerned every single one was a necessary part of my job.

“They related to real situations, real patients, real risks, and in the absence of any other route or methodology for communicating those things, then that was really the way to do it.”

The inquiry also heard there was a “staffing crisis” in the infection control team even while the workload from infection issues was mounting, caused by staff being unwilling to take on infection control duties, and staff going off sick.

Dr Peters added it was “not normal” for staff not to put themselves forward for infection control duties, but this was indicative of the “unhealthy culture” in the team.

The inquiry heard that in January 2019 Dr Peters herself had to be signed off work for three months due to the “extreme stress and bullying” she was experiencing from managers.

She highlighted two occasions when she was shouted and sworn at by a manager in front of colleagues, on one occasion fearing she would be physically attacked.

The inquiry also heard about growing evidence of infections and pathogens at the hospital between 2014 and 2019, including evidence of pathogen-containing mould on parts of the water system, infections consistent with a water source with “biofilm” on it, and infections linked to pigeon guano.

An NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde (NHSGGC) spokesman said: “These matters are to be explored in the ongoing inquiry and while NHSGGC continues to co-operate with the inquiry, it would be inappropriate to comment on this at this time.”

The inquiry continues.

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