NHS Tayside sorry for 'adding to Eljamel trauma'

Sam Eljamel harmed dozens of patients while he was the head of the neurosurgery department at Ninewells Hospital in Dundee

NHS Tayside has apologised for adding to patients' trauma with the way it handled concerns over disgraced brain surgeon Sam Eljamel, as a public inquiry gets under way in Edinburgh.

Eljamel, who was head of neurosurgery at Dundee's Ninewells Hospital until his suspension in December 2013, harmed dozens of patients and left some with life-changing injuries.

The inquiry will examine his appointments between 1995 and 2014 and how NHS Tayside responded when concerns were raised about his practice.

It is unclear whether the surgeon, who is believed to be working in Libya, will appear before the inquiry as various efforts to contact him had been unsuccessful.

A preliminary hearing in Edinburgh was told that these efforts have included letters, emails and phone calls to hospitals where he is understood have been working, and contact with professional bodies who represented him in the past.

However, Eljamel cannot be compelled to give evidence if he is not living in the UK.

The inquiry will investigate whether Eljamel or the health board concealed information about his professional conduct, and whether the systems in place were sufficient to protect patients.

Almost 158 "core participants" are set to contribute, including 133 of Eljamel's former patients, and the representatives of a further 19 patients.

Opening statements will be held in November with three weeks set aside in February for evidential hearings.

These will provide a general background and overview of Eljamel's career to provide context.

Former patients are expected to give evidence in spring 2026, with medical professionals set to appear in the autumn.

The hearing was told that while the inquiry has no power to make findings of criminality, this does not limit its ability to "make findings from which criminality might be inferred".

Dr James Cotton, executive medical director of NHS Tayside, said he acknowledged the many years it had taken to reach this "significant milestone".

He added: "We know that many people have experienced considerable distress as patients of Mr Eljamel and we understand that in many cases we have added to that trauma in the way that we have handled ongoing complaints and concerns.

"We are sincerely sorry for this."

Dr Cotton added that since the publication of NHS Tayside's 2023 Due Diligence Review into Eljamel, the board had "fully committed to making improvements where failings have been identified."

Who is Sam Eljamel?

He was the head of the neurosurgery department in Ninewells - one of just four specialist centres in Scotland.

The surgeon was an adviser to the Scottish government and also worked at Fernbrae private hospital in Dundee.

We know that he qualified in Tripoli in Libya before moving to Liverpool.

From there he went to Dublin where he worked as a senior neurosurgical registrar.

Eljamel then went to Connecticut where he claims he completed a fellowship at Hartford Hospital.

Although when BBC Scotland's Disclosure team contacted them they said they had no record of this.

The surgeon also claims he was a visiting professor at the Universities of Connecticut and San Diego but again when contacted the universities said this was not the case.

The inquiry said it had received information Eljamel was working in a hospital in Misrata, Libya called Al-Nada, but efforts to locate him have been unsuccessful.

What has been the impact on patients?

The start of the inquiry with a preliminary hearing has been welcomed by former patients of Eljamel.

Alan Ogilvie, who was operated on in 1995 and is now a spokesman for the Patients Action Group (PAG), said: "For the dozens of patients who have fought tirelessly for years, this hearing is a significant, if profoundly delayed, milestone.

"We have waited two years since the inquiry was first announced, and even longer since we were first harmed, for this process to finally begin in public."

Pace of police investigation criticised

Last year, Scotland's top law officer criticised the pace of Operation Stringent -Police Scotland's investigation into the case.

Lord Advocate Dorothy Bain KC told campaigner Jules Rose in a letter that the probe "has not progressed as it should have".

"I fully accept that you are profoundly concerned about the time that has now elapsed - seven years - between the first report to Operation Stringent and where the investigation now sits," she wrote.

Police Scotland said the probe was "an extremely complex and protracted investigation".

Inquiry chairman Lord Weir has said he intended to seek evidence from UK-wide regulatory bodies like the General Medical Council (GMC) and the Health and Safety Executive (HSE).

However, PAG said it had concerns over the Inquiry's legal terms of reference which prevent it from making binding recommendations about these organisations.

The inquiry will determine whether patients were let down by failures in clinical governance, risk management, and complaints procedures, and to what extent Eljamel's private practice, research, and workload impacted on the care received by his patients within NHS Tayside.

It will be able to make recommendations on how practices could be improved to better protect NHS patients in the future.

A Scottish government spokesperson said the inquiry was a "significant milestone" and the government was "fully committed to engaging constructively with the process and value the progress made by Lord Weir and his team".

Timeline of the Eljamel investigation

June 2013 - Sam Eljamel is put under investigation and under supervision

August 2013 - Eljamel operates on Jules Rose's tumour

October 2013 - Royal College of Surgeons interim report on Eljamel

6 December 2013 - Royal College of Surgeons final report on Eljamel

9 December 2013 - A second procedure by Eljamel is undertaken on Ms Rose

10 December 2013 - Eljamel is suspended

May 2014 - Eljamel retires from NHS Tayside

3 September 2018 - BBC Scotland Disclosure investigation reveals how Eljamel harmed patients for years

12 September 2018 - Patients ask Police Scotland to investigate the Eljamel cases

20 February 2020 - Eljamel is found to be working in Libya

21 December 2021 - Eljamel is ordered to pay former patient Carolyn Almond-Roots' £2.8m compensation claim

November 2022 - An internal Scottish government report seen by the BBC highlights NHS Tayside failures

September 2023 - The Scottish government confirms a public inquiry will be held

23 December 2024 - Lord advocate criticises slow pace of the police probe into the surgeon

3 April 2025 - Public inquiry officially launched

10 September 2025 - Preliminary hearing gets public inquiry under way in Edinburgh