NHS whistleblower Shyam Kumar wins case against regulator

Orthopaedic surgeon Shyam Kumar worked part-time for the Care Quality Commission

A doctor who was sacked for raising patient safety concerns has won a case against England's hospital regulator, the Care Quality Commission (CQC).

Orthopaedic surgeon Shyam Kumar worked part-time for the CQC as a special adviser on hospital inspections, but Manchester Employment Tribunal found that he was unfairly dismissed.

He had reported concerns regarding inadequate hospital inspections, staff bullying and serious patient harm.

The CQC "accepted the findings".

Mr Kumar, who has been awarded compensation, says his concerns were ignored.

"The whole energy of a few individuals in the CQC was spent on gunning me down, rather than focusing on improvement to patient safety and exerting the regulatory duties," he said.

'Inappropriate' operations

Between 2015 and his dismissal in 2019, Mr Kumar wrote to senior colleagues at the CQC with a number of serious concerns.

They included a hospital inspection, at which he claims patient safety was significantly compromised when a group of whistleblowing doctors was prevented from discussing their concerns.

Mr Kumar said, on many occasions, he reported concerns about a surgeon at his own trust, Morecambe Bay, who had carried out operations that were "inappropriate" and of an "unacceptable" quality and harmed patients.

He warned the CQC that the trust management wanted to bury it "under the carpet". The tribunal noted that his concerns were found to be justified and the surgeon eventually had conditions placed on his licence to practise.

At an earlier Manchester hearing, the CQC's barrister, Tim Holloway, put it to Mr Kumar that his claim the regulator had ignored his concerns was "fanciful".

Mr Kumar said: "I was perceived as a troublemaker within the CQC, or as a thorn in their side. That's what I believe. And they just ignored it. And finally, people got involved." he said.

The tribunal's judgement confirmed that the safety issues Mr Kumar raised played a significant role in his dismissal.

"It is very clear that the emails and concerns raised by Mr Kumar had a material impact on the decision to disengage him," it said.

Mr Kumar says he is relieved about the verdict, adding: "From a personal point of view, I feel vindicated."

The CQC said: "We accept the tribunal findings and have learnt from this case. We have already improved many of our processes and will continue to review these based on the findings to ensure we make any further necessary changes."

The British Medical Association said: "Rather than punishing those who bravely speak up, the system should be supporting them, so that steps can be taken to improve safety for both staff and patients."