Police seek extra staff in NHS manslaughter probe

Four whistleblowers told the BBC in late 2023 that patients had died unnecessarily

A police force is recruiting extra staff to investigate potential manslaughter charges at an NHS trust.

Sussex Police is advertising for criminal investigators to join Operation Bramber, a probe into at least 105 cases of alleged medical negligence at two surgery departments at University Hospitals Sussex NHS.

Criminal investigators support police officers in evidence gathering and forensic analysis. The proposed salary is £17.03 an hour.

A police spokesman said a number of cases had been assessed and formed part of the investigation. A spokesman for the NHS trust said it could not publicly discuss matters relating to an ongoing inquiry.

“This is an investigation into potential offences of Manslaughter by Gross Negligence and Corporate Manslaughter by Gross Negligence at a large medical establishment in Sussex”, the online job advert said.

“[These are some] of the most serious criminal offences with sentencing powers of life imprisonment for offenders.”

The trust previously said data does not reflect allegations of unnecessary deaths

Families of patients whose treatment is being investigated by Operation Bramber have been told by police their “initial scoping process” will take “many months”.

Emails shared with the BBC show police have said the “complexity of this investigation and the number of cases involved” means they are “unable to investigate all cases simultaneously”.

Sussex Police is “therefore taking a phased approach to this initial stage of the investigation”, the emails said.

'Cooperating fully'

Operation Bramber involves allegations relating to neurosurgery and general surgery at the Royal Sussex County Hospital in Brighton between 2015 and 2021.

A Sussex Police spokesperson said: “A number of cases… have been assessed and are forming part of the ongoing investigation. This does not necessarily mean this will lead to criminal prosecution.

“A dedicated team of specially-trained officers are in contact with those patients or families of patients whose cases are included in the investigation and providing information to support them while the investigation is ongoing.”

A spokesperson for the NHS trust said: “We are unable to publicly discuss matters relating to an ongoing police inquiry, but we are cooperating fully and will continue to do whatever we can to support the process.”

'Culture of fear'

Last December four whistleblowers told the BBC patients had died unnecessarily while others were "effectively maimed" while being cared for at the trust.

The whistleblowers also complained of a "Mafia-like" management culture.

The trust has previously said data does not reflect allegations of unnecessary deaths and that there is no evidence of a top-down toxic culture.

In February an investigation by the Royal College of Surgeons said one of the trust’s general surgery departments was operating in "a culture of fear" where bullying and harassment from management was rife.

Staff at Brighton's Royal Sussex County Hospital were told to "sit down, shut up and listen" in meetings, the report said.

Concerns were also raised around conditions for patients.

At the time, chief executive Dr George Findlay said the report was "a really tough read" but the trust was making improvements.