Queen Elizabeth hospital – the infections in those who died are far more likely to have been brought in by them or by those visiting them

By Professor John Robertson OBA

From BBC Scotland today:

The public inquiry into patient safety at Scotland’s biggest hospital is facing a legal challenge over its decision to reject new evidence for its latest hearings. Earlier this month, NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde (GGC) submitted a report to the Scottish Hospitals Inquiry claiming the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital campus had no excess infections since 2015.

But the inquiry rejected the submission, saying it would delay the inquiry’s progress at this stage. Now NHS GGC is seeking a judicial review of this decision.

I can’t help but be reminded of the Lucy Letby appeals where the judge refused to hear new independent expert comment.

Needless to say, BBC Scotland have not quoted any of the report. Here are the key statements:

The report’s authors are stated to be Professor Peter Hawkey, Professor Emeritus of Clinical & Public Bacteriology and Consultant Clinical Microbiologist, Grampian Health Board; Dr Samir Agrawal, Consultant Haematologist, St Bartholomew’s Hospital and Senior Lecturer Queen Mary University of London; and Dr Lydia Drumwright, Research Assistant Professor, University of Washington.

Impressive.

Taken together these data provide little to no evidence for environmental sources of bacteraemia in patients at QEUH and conversely suggest that policies and procedures for patient management over time could be decreasing incidence of bacteraemia attributable to environmentally relevant microorganisms, as well as all BSIs, although this is speculative and the patient population still has significant bacteraemia burden overall.

By clear implication, the infections in those who died are far more likely to have been brought in by them or by those visiting them than to have come from the water or ventilation systems.

Source: https://www.hospitalsinquiry.scot/inquiry-document/decision-and-note-reasons-chair

The OBA – https://scotsindependent.scot/?page_id=116

6 thoughts on “Queen Elizabeth hospital – the infections in those who died are far more likely to have been brought in by them or by those visiting them”

  1. Ah, but whit aboot the pigeon shit? An, whit aboot the consultant who wisnae a public health specialist that John Beattie met at a dinner party who said that ‘no-one tellt her tae sanities her hauns when she went in, despite the fact that there wur notices all over the hospital as well as bottles of hand sanitizer? An yon Anas Sarwar hus been shoutin the odds fur years an he disnae huv an axe tae grind apart frae hatin the SNP an pittin him in charge.

    The purpose of public enquiries are not necessarily to get to the root of an issue. Identifying someone to BLAME is what the media and opposition politicians want.

    Alasdair Macdonald

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  2. The Health Board has already been hung, drawn and quartered by the media, surely it deserves to be allowed to submit an evidence based submission supporting it’s position to the inquiry in the public interest.

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  3. I visited FV hospital and at the entrance to the left were patients standing and in wheelchairs out for a “fag”. There was a roof overhang that gave some cover but was also a roost for pigeons. The droppings on the ground were being trampled on by slippers and chair wheels and transported back in to the corridors and wards. That’s how pigeon poo gets into wards!

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    1. Nice try Lisa, but sterile control areas go way beyond just popping out for a fag and inadvertently stepping on a little shit (Sharea Schith?) then coming straight back in…

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  4. If Damn Jaikie Bailout says that pigeons kept in Nicola Sturgeon’s dookit were responsible for infecting the QEUH then I don’t think an army of so-called experts , probably all SNPeee diehards , can be trusted to give an honest opinion .

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  5. IMHO the Inquiry was correct in refusing to allow the report as evidence at this stage, that’s not how Inquiries work.

    I’ve no idea why I hadn’t seen this Lazy Winters article before, but couldn’t help notice it took her only one brief paragraph before introducing Milly Main to the article, then a further two before the photo that the entitre UK came to know at BBC Scotland’s insistence appeared, all that was missing was the debate clip of Sarwar repeating “What about Milly Main” for the band to be back together.

    Minus the physical Agent Smith of course, as she’s on a tour of the USA, as recommended by all future BBC Scotland Political Editors…

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