Offline: “A singular lack of foresight”

Abstract

On the evening of June 23, a meeting of senior staff took place in the Kennedy Lecture Theatre at the Institute of Child Health to discuss recent adverse publicity about Great Ormond Street Hospital (GOSH). The event was opened by Baroness Tessa Blackstone, chairman of the Trust Board. According to one person present, two issues were raised. First, the critical media coverage of GOSH, relating to the death of baby Peter Connelly in 2007. Second, the implications of concerns raised by GOSH staff about the hospital's management culture. The evening concluded with a standing ovation for GOSH's chief executive, Dr Jane Collins. To recap briefly. On June 18, we reported that Lynne Featherstone, a UK Member of Parliament and Minister in the current government, had drawn attention to serious concerns about the way GOSH handled events before and after the death of baby Peter. Dr Barbara Buckley and Prof Martin Elliott, co-medical directors of GOSH, have rejected these criticisms. But the central concern raised by some senior consultants at GOSH still remains: the international standing of the hospital has been—is being—let down by poor governance, inferior management, and a hostile culture. Response to Offline about Great Ormond Street HospitalWe are responding to your Offline column of June 18 (p 2068),1 in which you repeat allegations made by Lynne Featherstone, Member of Parliament, that Great Ormond Street Hospital (GOSH) withheld vital information from enquiries into the tragic death of Peter Connelly. Your article was highly speculative and ill-informed. Full-Text PDF