A RAFT of senior staff have quit their jobs in infection control at Glasgow’s super hospital.

The lead infection control doctor at the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital resigned from their post, sources say, after raising concerns about the safety of ward 6A, which was housing child cancer patients.

It is understood the senior doctor, a microbiologist, questioned the safety of the facility, which has been closed to new admissions since August after three cancer patients were struck down with rare infections in the space of a fortnight.

We can further reveal three infection control nurses have also walked out in last several months, taking up new roles elsewhere – some with watchdog Health Protection Scotland.

Sources close to the former NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde (NHSGGC) employees say they quit over pressure and concerns about management.

NHSGGC have yet to replace the infection control doctor, and say they have several people filling the role while they look for a permanent replacement.

It comes after it emerged this week that a child died at the hospital in 2017 after contracting a bacterial infection which a whistleblower claims was linked to the water supply in the £842m facility.

Milly Main, 10, had been receiving treatment for leukaemia when she contracted Stenotrophomonas.

Her mother Kimberley Darroch has called for NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde to “come clean” about her daughter’s cause of death, however the health board did not test the water at the time of the 10-year-old’s death, and say there is now no way to know if it was the cause.

Labour MSP Anas Sarwar last night called for the health board to be put under special measures following the cover-up allegations.

Parents of children being treated in the hospital have raised concerns about the safety of water at the facility previously, and this week NHSGGC bosses told them they can return to drinking the tap water in the cancer ward.

Previously patients were being given bottled water to drink and advised not to use the tap water unless it was for hand washing.

This week NHSGGC told parents in a letter that they have now finished fitting extra filters on all the taps, and advised parents they can now drink tap water and bottled supplies will be withdrawn.

Charmaine Lacock, whose daughter Paige is being treated at the facility, said the move was “irresponsible” and questioned the safety of the water if filters were needed.

She said: “We feel this is irresponsible and putting our children at further risk.

“Unless we see proof we can not accept their word for it. The fact that a child has died due to the water is not reassuring for any parent. I feel like the health board is trying so hard to prove that the water is safe that they are pushing us to use our children as guinea pigs.

“When we ask for proof, everything is being swept under the carpet. We feel it is irresponsible reverting back to drinking the tap water without giving us proof it is safe.

“The real issues here are being side-stepped. Paige will not be going near the water in any way when we are in the hospital. As parents we made the decision to buy our own water and bring it in with us.”

A government-appointed employee who is responsible for liaising with parents and the health board has now told Lacock that he will be asking for data on water safety, in an attempt to reassure parents.

An email sent yesterday to families stated: “I am going to ask NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde to provide further information relating to water safety for parents such as data on the frequency of water sampling and the results from the tests on samples. I am confident from some of the data I have seen referred to in meetings that this will provide a further level of assurance as to the evidence being used to make decisions and inform communications on the safety of the water. “

On staff resignations, a spokeswoman from NHSGGC said: “NHSGGC has a significant team of 45 experts working within infection control.We have individuals fulfilling the management role of Lead Infection Control Doctor on a temporary basis while we actively recruit a permanent replacement. All of the nursing staff except one have been replaced and the remaining post is in the process of being replaced. “

On the concerns by the former lead infection control doctor, she said: “The Lead Infection Control Doctor was the chair of the Incident Management Team until they resigned from their Lead role.

“The purpose of this meeting was to consider any hypotheses about infections and possible links to the ward.This process, overseen by the IMT chair, has carried out extensive investigations into the ward environment and found no links.”

On the water safety of ward 6A, they said: “The water in the hospital is safe. Our on-site water plant ensures all water coming into the hospital has a low dose of chlorine dioxide, which keeps it clean and safe. In addition, any patient cared for high risk areas have point of use water filters in place as an extra precaution.

“The safety of the water has been confirmed to be safe by the external Authorising Engineer, a specialist engineer who acts, and is employed, independently of NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde. The Authorising Engineer has rated the water supply as ‘wholesome’, which is the industry term used to say it is safe.”