Following an investigation into its paediatric orthopaedic department, Cambridge University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust is now looking at its neuroscience service.
The challenges for Addenbrooke’s Hospital continue to mount as the Cambridge University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust hospital launches an urgent review into its neuroscience service after concerns were raised about the department.
The neuroscience unit at Addenbrooke’s is responsible for treating conditions including complex brain injuries, head trauma and neurological disorders.
Two specialist external health bodies will oversee the investigation, which CUH says will look across multiple clinical teams rather than focusing on any single clinician. The investigation will run until the end of February, with a final report expected to be delivered to the trust by the summer.
“We take concerns about clinical services or individuals extremely seriously, and we have established processes to investigate thoroughly when issues are brought to our attention,” said a spokesperson for the Trust.
It has confirmed that the findings of the neuroscience investigation will be made fully public and that it will act on all recommendations.
Paediatric fallout
The neuroscience investigation comes as the hospital continues to deal with the consequences of the separate high-profile investigation within its paediatric orthopaedic department and suspended paediatric orthopaedic surgeon Kuldeep Stohr.
As Healthcare Today reported in December, the legal team at Hudgell Solicitors had called for a public inquiry into Addenbrooke’s Hospital patient safety failings and had written to health secretary Wes Streeting.
Stohr was suspended in January last year after having her practice restricted by the Trust the previous October.
The first concerns date back as far as ten years, and at the beginning of April last year, the external inquiry into issues with hip operations performed on children at Addenbrooke’s Hospital in Cambridge concluded. It found that the trust had missed multiple opportunities to act on earlier warnings and concerns raised about Stohr’s practice.
In November, she had restrictions placed on her by an interim orders tribunal for 18 months.
“The recent concerns raised about the neuroscience and orthopaedic services at Addenbrooke’s Hospital are deeply troubling,” said Maria Repanos, the head of clinical negligence in Manchester for Hudgell Solicitors.
“It is vital that the trust demonstrates transparency, investigates failures rigorously and implements changes that prevent similar issues in the future,” she added.
