Nottingham NHS trust dismisses 15 staff over attacks victims’ records

Four more staff at Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust have been sacked for inappropriately accessing medical records linked to the 2023 Nottingham attacks, bringing the total dismissed to 15.

The trust said it had also issued 15 final written warnings and two first written warnings. Two cases resulted in no action after investigators found there was no case to answer. Investigations are continuing, including into access to records belonging to survivors Wayne Birkett, Sharon Miller and Marcin Gawronski. [1]

The victims’ families had welcomed the trust’s action but described the 11 dismissals announced in May as a “kick in the teeth”. NUH medical director Dr Manjeet Shehmar said there was “simply no excuse” for accessing a patient’s records without a legitimate reason, and apologised to the families for the additional distress caused. [1]

The trust said staff from several professional groups had faced action and that it had notified the Nursing and Midwifery Council, the General Medical Council, the Information Commissioner’s Office and Nottinghamshire Police. It is testing a system designed to flag potential breaches and has run a staff campaign on data protection. [1]

Barnaby Webber and Grace O’Malley-Kumar, both students, and Ian Coates were killed on 13 June 2023 by Valdo Calocane, who is serving an indefinite hospital order after pleading guilty to manslaughter on the grounds of diminished responsibility. The dismissals come as a judge-led public inquiry examines events before and after the attacks. Its findings are due by May 2027. [1]

The NHS trust is not the only organisation whose staff have been found to have accessed information connected with the attacks. The inquiry heard that three probation officers accessed files without a legitimate reason, but the breaches were judged insufficiently serious for further action. Nottinghamshire Police has also said it would audit staff access to footage and images related to the attacks. [1]