Patients with complaints are being turned away by the NHS with some health boards insisting on ‘nothing to see here’ culture, Scotland’s patient safety chief has warned.
Karen Titchener’s comments came as the chairman of BMA Scotland claimed reputation management in parts of the health service ‘would appear’ to be more of a priority than the people they look after.
Ms Titchener spoke out after a witness to the Scottish Hospitals Inquiry, Dr Michael Bradnam, gave evidence saying he had spent 15 years raising issues at the scandal-hit Queen Elizabeth University Hospital (QEUH) in Glasgow with ‘no formal response’.
The independent patient safety commissioner, who has been in her post for less than a year, said it was not unheard of for the NHS to ignore those wanting to complain about their care.
She told BBC Radio Scotland: ‘Time and time again, and I would say with the majority of our stories, the patient’s just shut down and they’re not listened to.
‘They’re even seen as a pest and an aggressive patient when they’re trying to bring up something [when] they feel that harm was caused to them.
‘That’s the concern, we should be putting the patients first and we should be saying “somebody’s raising a concern” or saying “look this is how my care happened”.’
A patient safety tsar has claimed some health boards care more about reputation than patients
Ms Titchener added: ‘We all have to be open and transparent, but also we’ve got to start taking accountability for what goes on.
‘I can’t say a sweeping statement that I think all boards everywhere are, but from some of the interactions I’ve had, there’s certainly a culture of “there’s nothing to see here”.
‘I’m independent so I don’t accept that, and I push and I push to get the reassurance I need that – with the case I’m involved in – they are going to make a change in order that that incident wouldn’t happen again.’
Meanwhile, BMA Scotland chairman Dr Iain Kennedy said there has to be a culture change, and added: ‘The culture is set at the top, at the very top, so it’s really important that whoever is First Minister in Scotland and the Cabinet Secretary for Health, they set the culture, as do the MSPs in Holyrood.’
He told the Herald this week that many health boards appeared to be focusing on ‘balancing the books’ and ‘keeping off the radar of the Scottish Government’.
Dr Kennedy added: ‘It’s very clear that in Scotland we still have a situation where health board reputation management and protecting the government comes ahead of patient safety and of doctor wellbeing.’
Families who lost loved ones as a result of environmental issues at the QEUH said on Thursday they were ‘shocked to the core’ by Dr Bradnam’s submission to the inquiry, which came to light at the weekend.
A spokesman for NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde confirmed Dr Bradnam had been in touch this year raising a ‘number of issues’ and that the chief executive and chief operating officers arranged to meet him, with a short-life working group established to ‘review and better understand concerns raised’.
Health Secretary Angela Constance has reiterated support for whistleblowers
The spokesman continued: ‘Dr Bradnam agreed to support the work of the group, bringing his expert knowledge and experience to the process.
‘The group has now been asked to produce a report setting out the issues raised, actions taken to date and recommendations for next steps.
‘We recognise that Dr Bradnam has expressed concerns about previous responses to some of these matters.’
Health Secretary Angela Constance said: ‘I take a zero-tolerance approach to bullying and harassment and I expect all boards and their employees to act in line with NHS values.
‘Employees should be able to raise any concerns safely and we will continue to ensure support for whistleblowing is in place across every board.’
