An orthopaedic surgeon who specialises in treating children has been suspended from a hospital in Cambridge, England, after nine surgeries were found to fall “below expected standards”.
A review, which was commissioned in October after colleagues raised concerns about the doctor, was completed in January and looked at a number of complex paediatric hip surgery cases performed at Addenbrookes Hospital over two and a half years.
It found the outcomes of treatment provided to nine children were “below the standard we would expect”, Cambridge University Hospitals chief executive Roland Sinker told Sky News. The affected families were then approached by the hospital.
The outcomes were not life-threatening, but children’s mobility was found to be affected, with “challenges around their hips and where the upper parts of their legs meet their hips”, Sinker said, adding that the review started the “moment concerns were raised” last year.
A helpline was launched last Friday afternoon for any parents concerned their children may have been affected, and within two hours, it had already received seven phone calls.
Sinker said the trust was committed to being “utterly transparent” about what had happened, and encouraged any families who’d paediatric orthopaedic surgery at the hospital to contact the facility.
Reviewing all surgeries
The surgeon was put on restricted duties while an initial review took place, undertaken by an independent expert.
After the review, the surgeon was suspended and is “fully co-operating with the trust’s process”, Sinker said.
Now the trust is undertaking a retrospective review into all of the surgical operations already carried out by the doctor. It will review the quality of care received by those patients and schedule any further clinic assessments.
The trust had also informed the General Medical Council, NHS England and the Care Quality Commission.
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