Lucy Letby Hospital Consultant's Insight on the BBC Inquiry
Judith Moritz, Special Correspondent for Liverpool, shares her interview with Dr. John Gibbs, a former consultant pediatrician at the Countess of Chester Hospital who tried to raise concerns about Lucy Letby.
Grim Reading: The Final Inquiry Report
Dr. Gibbs, who worked at the hospital during Letby's tenure from 2015 to 2016, where she murdered seven babies and attempted to murder another seven, expressed his disappointment with the inquiry findings. He acknowledged that consultants share collective responsibility for the failings outlined in the report.
"I wish we consultants had been brave enough to follow our suspicions and escalate things to the police earlier... If my other consultant colleagues didn't go to the police, I should have."
Key Takeaways from the Thirlwall Inquiry:
- Lady Justice Thirlwall's report highlights a complete failure to protect infants on the neonatal unit.
- The police should have been notified sooner.
- Hospital managers repeatedly dismissed consultants' valid concerns.
Dr. Gibbs, reflecting on the findings, acknowledges the report's harsh nature, especially for parents affected by Letby's actions:
"I wasn't expecting it to be an easy read and it certainly isn't... I apologise to the families for our failure."
He agrees with the inquiry's conclusion that hospital executives missed multiple chances to intervene and potentially save lives during the period of Letby's activity.
However, Dr. Gibbs also recalls a tense atmosphere after Letby was moved off the unit before police involvement, where managers pushed for acceptance of Letby's innocence:
"It was a very difficult atmosphere, very tense, very stressful dealing with the managers."
He further highlights failures within his team, including a doctor who disregarded bloating in a baby as simply gas.