I AM full of admiration for the courage shown by Dr Christine Peters and Dr Penelope Redding, not only in relation to their actions when employed at the QEUH, but also in speaking out recently to the media ("Doctors who blew whistle on hospital tell of ordeals", The Herald, June 26). It is clear from what they have said that many of their concerns at the hospital were not well-received and were not properly addressed.
It is entirely appropriate that the two doctors should speak out about their experiences. As they have done so, I have been impressed by their professionalism and demeanour. However, my fear would now be that there could be an unintentional effect of discouraging potential whistleblowers.
As a result of their whistleblowing activities, Dr Peters described how she developed post-traumatic stress and Dr Redding has stated that she developed heart problems. Those employed in the NHS thinking of speaking out about deficiencies and faults are unlikely to be encouraged by the difficult experiences of the two doctors and the effects on their health, and many of their family and friends could well seek to influence them not to put their heads above the parapet, as it were.
I am at a loss to understand how a spokeswoman for NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde with the benefit of the knowledge of the experiences of the two doctors, could state: "We support all staff to speak up if they believe things are not working as they should." The case of the two doctors illustrates that what is clearly needed within certain NHS senior management is a clear, unequivocal and meaningful change of attitude in relation to whistleblowing and a confirmation that the care of patients should at all times be the primary consideration above all others.
Ian W Thomson, Lenzie.
JUST as a postscript to the detailed letters (June 26) concerning the infection and contamination problems at the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital, I also watched the Disclosure programme. What seemed to me to be a quite extraordinary remark made in passing by one of the ultimate whistleblowers, Dr Christine Peters, a consultant microbiologist, has stuck with me ever since. She was talking about her difficulty initially in raising her concerns. If I heard her correctly, she said she was told along the lines of “this is Glasgow, we don’t put it in writing in case of any inquiries".
I assume she did finally put her concerns in writing, but if her recollection of what she was told at the time is correct, the problems at the QEUH went beyond incompetent management into a culture of deliberate attempts at cover-up.
Alan Fitzpatrick, Dunlop.
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