UNITED KINGDOM. Cheshire: The lead consultant at the neonatal unit, where nurse Lucy Letby worked, revealed that hospital administrators failed to investigate allegations against her and attempted to silence doctors.
Despite multiple warnings over several months about the possibility of Letby harming infants, the hospital also postponed involving the police.
Dr Stephen Brearey, the lead consultant, initially expressed concerns about Letby in October 2015, but no action was taken. Consequently, Lucy went on to harm additional babies, resulting in two deaths. Letby has been convicted of murdering seven babies and trying to murder six others in the neonatal unit at the Countess of Chester Hospital in Cheshire.
The initial five killings occurred from June to October 2015, with the last two taking place in June 2016, despite numerous prior alerts. A UK media portal conducted an inquiry into how Letby managed to commit multiple infant murders and inflict injuries over an extended period.
The investigation uncovers a series of mistakes and prompts significant inquiries into the hospital’s handling of the fatalities. In June 2016, after the last two murders, Dr Brearey insisted that Letby be suspended from duty, but the hospital administration initially declined.
Investigation findings
The hospital’s top leader instructed doctors to apologise to Letby and cease making accusations against her. Despite suspicions that Letby was causing infant deaths, two consultants were directed to engage in mediation with her.
When Letby was eventually relocated, she was placed in the risk and patient safety office, where she could access sensitive neonatal unit documents and remained close to senior managers responsible for investigating her.
The inappropriate reporting of deaths led to an undetected high fatality rate within the broader NHS system, as shared by a manager who took charge after the fatalities.
In addition to her seven murder convictions, Letby was present during six other baby deaths at the hospital, prompting an expanded police investigation. Furthermore, two infants died during Letby’s tenure at Liverpool Women’s Hospital.
2015 findings
Prior to June 2015, the neonatal unit at the Countess of Chester Hospital experienced around two to three infant fatalities annually. However, an unusual occurrence transpired in the summer of 2015.
In just a span of two weeks in June, three babies unexpectedly passed away. This prompted Dr Stephen Brearey, the lead consultant for the neonatal unit, to convene a meeting with Eirian Powell, the unit manager, and Alison Kelly, the hospital’s director of nursing.
The investigation, which aimed for thoroughness, uncovered that Lucy Letby had been present during all three deaths. Dr Brearey recalls expressing disbelief at the possibility of Lucy’s involvement, saying, “Oh no, it can’t be Lucy. Not nice, Lucy.”
There was “nothing in common” among the three deaths, it seemed. Nobody had any suspicions about foul play, even Dr. Brearey. However, by October 2015, there were developments. Two additional infants had passed away, and Letby had been present during both incidents.
At this point, Dr Brearey grew anxious that Letby might be causing harm to the babies. He once again reached out to unit manager Eirian Powell, but she didn’t appear to share his apprehensions.
In an email from October 2015, Powell described the connection between Letby and the unexpected infant deaths as “unfortunate.” She pointed out that each cause of death had been distinct, and she regarded the association with Letby as coincidental.
Despite Dr Brearey’s concerns, higher-level managers didn’t show significant worry. In that same month of October 2015, Dr Brearey communicated his concerns about Letby to the director of nursing Alison Kelly, yet he received no response.
2016 incidents
Early in June, yet another infant passed away. Then, at the end of the month, two of the premature triplets passed away suddenly and within a 24-hour period. Letby was working when both people died. Dr Brearey went to a meeting for staff members who had experienced trauma after the death of the second triplet.
He says that while others were “almost crumbling before your eyes,” Letby dismissed his insinuation that she must be exhausted or distressed. She replied, “No, I’m back on shift tomorrow.” She was pretty content and self-assured when she arrived at work, he said.
The deaths of the two triplets served as a turning point for Dr Brearey and his other experts. Dr Brearey claims he called Karen Rees, the executive on duty, that evening and demanded that Letby be excused from duty. She declined.
Dr Brearey questioned Rees if her decision was in opposition to the desires of seven consultant paediatricians and inquired whether she would assume accountability for potential incidents involving other infants the following day. Rees responded affirmatively.
The subsequent day, another infant, referred to as Baby Q, came close to death while Letby was on duty. Letby continued to work three additional shifts before eventually being taken off the neonatal unit over a year after the initial occurrence.
After this point, the unusual deaths and incidents ceased.
2017: Yet no police inquiry
In early January 2017, during a hospital board meeting, Harvey shared the results of two reviews that recommended further investigation into some baby deaths, yet this information wasn’t conveyed to the board members.
The meeting notes indicate that Harvey attributed issues in the neonatal unit to leadership and timely intervention problems. Several weeks later, in late January 2017, seven neonatal consultants were called to a meeting with senior managers, including Harvey and CEO Tony Chambers.
According to Dr Brearey, the CEO informed them he had spent time with Letby and her father, apologising and suggesting Letby was innocent.
However, Chambers denies directly stating Letby’s innocence, noting he was summarising her father’s stance. The CEO also requested the consultants apologise to Letby and cautioned them about potential “consequences” if they went against this directive.
Managers directed two consultants to participate in mediation sessions with Letby in March 2017, but only one doctor engaged in discussion with the nurse regarding her grievance. Dr Brearey did not partake.
Investigation
However, despite this, the consultants remained resolute. Following the apology, the hospital, influenced by the consultants, sought police involvement in an investigation two months later.
In connection with their investigation, the police detained Letby twice between 2018 and 2019, according to PA. In November 2020, she was detained yet again.
During searches of her address, authorities discovered notes Letby had written.
“I don’t deserve to live. I killed them on purpose because I’m not good enough to care for them,” she said in one memo, and in another, she wrote, “I am a horrible evil person,” in complete capital letters, “I am evil; I did this.”
Tony Chambers, the former CEO, stated, “All my thoughts are with the children at the heart of this case and their families and loved ones at this incredibly difficult time. I am truly sorry for what all the families have gone through.”
Chambers said the crimes committed are heinous and that he is profoundly pained by what has come to light. He stated that as CEO, his priority was the safety of the infant unit as well as the well-being of patients and staff. Tony went on to say that he was open and inclusive in his responses to information and guidance.
“I will cooperate fully and openly with any post-trial inquiry,” he said.
Dr Nigel Scawn, the hospital’s current medical director, stated that the entire trust was “deeply saddened and appalled” by Letby’s acts.
He stated that since Letby worked there, “significant changes” had taken place at the hospital, and he intended to “give every patient who accesses our services reassurance that they can have confidence in the care that they will receive.”
Following Letby’s departure from the hospital’s neonatal unit, there has been a solitary fatality in a span of seven years.
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