Staff in hospital trust at centre of inquiry 'risked reprisals for speaking up'

Staff at a hospital trust where police are investigating at least 90 deaths have said they face reprisals and ridicule from bosses if they raise concerns, according to a damning report.

- Matthew Weaver

Reviewers said they "repeatedly heard concerning examples of staff, often at a senior level, being ignored, dismissed and sometimes ridiculed when speaking up" at University Hospitals Sussex.

Whistleblowers' fear of reprisals could be harming patient safety, the report by Niche Health and Social Care Consulting found. It also highlighted complaints of misogyny and failures to deal with "unwanted romantic advances".

The review team noted a number of challenges facing the trust, including an investigation by Sussex police into possible corporate and individual manslaughter charges over allegations of medical negligence and cover-up in the general surgery and neurosurgery departments.