Police investigate deaths at Royal Sussex County Hospital

Sussex Police is investigating deaths over a five-year period at the hospital

Police are investigating the deaths of patients at a Brighton hospital.

Sussex Police has confirmed it was looking into allegations of medical negligence at the Royal Sussex County Hospital in Brighton, East Sussex over a five-year period.

The claims concern alleged failings in neurosurgery and general surgery between 2015 and 2020.

The trust said it was co-operating fully with the investigation.

Police and the hospital trust could not confirm the number of deaths being looked at, but some reports suggested the figure was "about 40".

In May the Care Quality Commission (CQC) downgraded the hospital to "requires improvement" after whistleblowers prompted an inspection.

Lloyd Russell-Moyle, the Labour MP for Brighton Kemptown, said he was "deeply worried" about the investigation.

The force said: "Sussex Police has received allegations of medical negligence at the Royal Sussex County Hospital, Brighton, and is currently assessing these allegations.

"The concerns raised relate to neurosurgery and general surgery in a period between 2015 and 2020.

"Inquiries are at an early stage and this does not necessarily mean this will lead to criminal prosecution."

MP Lloyd Russell-Moyle says there needs to be full co-operation with the police investigation

A trust spokesman said: "The trust has been contacted by Sussex Police as part of their inquiries relating to the care of a number of general surgery and neurosurgery patients at the Royal Sussex County Hospital in Brighton between 2015 and 2020.

"It would be inappropriate to comment further at this stage other than to confirm that we are co-operating fully to ensure the concerns raised are investigated."

'Sleepless nights'

Mr Russell-Moyle added: "I haven't received a briefing from the hospital, which is extremely disappointing, but they have assured me that they will brief us next week and we will get to the bottom of this.

"Those families that will have been affected will have be having sleepless nights now and we need full co-operation with the police. We need to find out if there was something criminal.

"We need to find out what's happening with our hospital trust, it's really struggling at the moment and we need a plan to get out of the mess."

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