A 12-year-old girl has become one of the one of the first to receive the findings of an independent investigation into her care at Addenbrooke’s Hospital in Cambridge.
The family of Tammy Harrison, a 12-year-old girl who was operated on by suspended Addenbrooke’s Hospital surgeon Kuldeep Stohr, have become one of the first to receive the findings of an independent investigation into her care and a written apology for the treatment she received.
As Healthcare Today reported at the beginning of April, the external inquiry into issues with hip operations performed on children at Addenbrooke’s Hospital in Cambridge has been expanded to cover 800 patients.
Surgery on Harrison in April 2021 was found to have been “below the standard expected” and likely caused “more than average pain”.
The independent expert who carried out the review of her treatment said Stohr, who specialises in paediatric surgery, had opted for hip surgery after an assessment had suggested Harrison was not suitable for a procedure to reduce muscle stiffness. She carried out an osteotomy – a procedure where a bone is cut and reshaped to alter its alignment – aimed at stabilising Harrison’s hip joint and improving her mobility.
In his review, James Hunter, the national lead for paediatric trauma and orthopaedics, said there had been “technical problems” with the surgery, as screws were inserted in the wrong place and were too low, meaning they did not properly connect to the bone, leading to gradual displacement.
Brief and lacks detail
“Tammy’s family have been issued a written apology which has come with an admission of substandard surgery, causing pain and harm, which is, of course, significant, but in terms of explaining what was found in the investigation, it is very brief, lacks detail, and is unclear,” said Elizabeth Maliakal, medical negligence solicitor, at Hudgell Solicitors who represents Harrison and her family.
Stohr was suspended in January after having her practice restricted by the Trust last October, when colleagues at the hospital raised concerns, as Healthcare Today reported.
The first concerns date back as far as ten years.
Maliakal says there are striking similarities with the case at Great Ormond Street Hospital, where the situation has raised concerns over governance at the Trust.
“We see far too many cases across the NHS where concerns are raised, either by patients or by staff, which are not properly investigated and acted upon by clinical and non-clinical management,” she said.
Stohr previously worked at Chelsea and Westminster Hospital, the Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital in Stanmore and Great Ormond Street Hospital in London.
