Oxford’s John Radcliffe hospital suspends children’s heart surgery

Press Release

An investigation has begun at an Oxford hospital where children's heart surgery was suspended after four recent deaths.

Although the investigation is in its early stages, there will be concerns that the deaths may have disturbing echoes of the notorious Bristol Royal Infirmary children's heart deaths scandal.

The John Radcliffe Hospital said the fatalities involved some "very sick children" and happened in procedures during the past three to four months.

A spokesman said patients' families were being told and urgent cases were being transferred to other hospitals. He said each death would be reviewed but other patients would not be put at risk by any delay.

Independent health regulator The Care Quality Commission (CQC) said it was not investigating the trust, but would monitor the trust's own review.

The hospital said the patients involved all had congenital heart problems, a general term for birth defects that affect the heart. Other cardiology procedures at the hospital will continue as usual.

Managers at the John Radcliffe are now contacting the families of 26 patients who were expecting to have surgery in the near future.

In a statement, the Oxford Radcliffe Hospitals NHS Trust said: "We have temporarily suspended the paediatric cardiac surgery service while we investigate concerns that have been raised.

"Our investigations are likely to include an external review of the deaths of some very sick children [four children] who underwent surgery at the John Radcliffe Hospital in the last three to four months.

"The families of children awaiting cardiac surgery are being contacted and we will be placing those patients who need to be seen urgently with other hospitals.

"This is high-risk surgery and the trust is taking the right steps in conducting this review.

"We are reviewing each of these patients to ensure that they are not put at risk by any delay in their treatment."

Roger Davidson, of the CQC, said: "We will monitor the situation extremely closely.

"It is reassuring that the trust has taken action to ensure the immediate safety of patients."

The hospital said surgery outcomes are "nationally validated" and Oxford had been "within normal outcome ranges".

It is not known how long the investigation will take but the entire treatment process for patients will be examined, not just the surgery, the trust said.
The president of the Society of Cardiothoracic Surgery, Leslie Hamilton, said children needing heart surgery would be sent to one of the country's 10 other specialist units while the Oxford service is suspended.

He told BBC Radio 4's Today programme: "They will look at the whole package of care.

"It will take a period of time to set up a review because they will want people from outside to come in and look at things, and that will be practising surgeons and cardiologists from other units."

In 2007 the hospital was criticised for its death rates among adult heart patients.

Two years earlier the Healthcare Commission began an investigation after it emerged that the number of trust patients who died between April 2002 and March 2005 after their first coronary artery bypass graft was more than double the national average - 4.01% compared with 1.83%.

Its report said that while rates at the John Radcliffe's cardiac surgery unit were "acceptable" improvements were urgently needed.
New procedures were introduced after the Bristol children's heart scandal, requiring hospitals to publish their success rates for cardiac surgery. Former BRI  anaesthetist and whistleblower Dr Stephen Bolsin compiled his own audit of mortality rates at the Bristol unit which led to what was described as the biggest surgical scandal in the history of the NHS. I was lead solicitor representing the 300 families belonging to the action group at the paediatric Public Inquiry which reported in 2001.
The legal team for the 300 families at the mammoth Bristol Royal Infirmary Public Inquiry held after the Bristol scandal, chaired by Professor Ian Kennedy was led by Laurence Vick, head of clinical negligence at Michelmores. The Kennedy report published in 2001 brought about major changes within the NHS in terms of audit and publication of surgical outcomes, governance, accountability and the culture within the medical profession.