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Background to the Suspension of Dr Raj Mattu
9. In September 2001 the Senior Hospital Medical Staff Committee held another vote of no confidence administered by the Electoral Reform Society. The motion was that the Consultant body had no confidence in the Chief Executive to implement the action plan developed subsequent to the CHI inspection report. This again was passed with two thirds of the vote in favour of the motion.
10. After persistent failure to address Dr Mattu's concerns (raised both formally and informally) the Chief Executive appeared on the BBC news on 21 September 2001 and was asked, "did patients actually die because of the five patients in four-patient bays?" Mr Loughton stated, "I have no knowledge of any patient having died as a result of it, because we were very selective on the fifth patient that was going into a cubicle."
11. Mr Loughton made this false and misleading claim, despite the existence of over 150 serious clinical incident report forms having been completed and submitted, supporting witness statements describing at least two deaths having been attributed to being the fifth patient in a four bedded bay, and Mr Loughton being in receipt of extensive correspondence about it since December 1999.
12. On 25 September 2001 Dr Mattu publicly confirmed on the BBC news that two deaths had indeed occurred due to the policy of placing the fifth patient in a four-bedded bay.
13. On 3 October 2001 the then Chairman of the Trust Board (Gary Reay) and the Chief Executive (Mr Loughton) again both denied that there was any evidence of patients coming to any harm or of deaths as a result of the Trusts' policy of placing a fifth patient in a four bedded bay (article in the Coventry Evening Telegraph).
14. On 4 October 2001 Dr Mattu challenged the Chairman of the Trust Board at a meeting of the Hospital Consultants body (the Senior Hospital Medical Staff Committee) over the issue of whether harm had come to any patient who was the fifth patient in a four-bedded bay. The Chairman denied harm had come to any patients in this circumstance.
15. At the same meeting the Medical Director (Dr Jim Macartney) admitted he had located a clinical incident form dated 21 December 1999 in which the death of a 35 year old who was the fifth patient in a four-bedded bay was documented. Shortly thereafter Dr Macartney resigned as Medical Director.
16. In November 2001 Dr Mattu raised concerns with the Chairman of the Trust Board (Mr Gary Reay) that he (Dr Mattu) had secured over £600,000 of funding for NHS service improvements but that the Trust had not accounted for about half of it. Dr Mattu sought assurances as to what had become of the money and whether it would be used as intended when it was raised. Gary Reay promised to make enquiries and that he would get back to Dr Mattu.
17. Dr Mattu had previously raised the issue with the Medical Director (Jim Macartney) on 8 February 2001 (a copy of which was forwarded to Mr Reay on 13 November 2001). Dr Mattu has still heard nothing regarding these apparently unaccounted monies.
18. On 30 November 2001 the Chairman of the Trust Board (Gary Reay) announced his resignation. The new Chairman was announced as being Mr Bryan Stoten.
On behalf of Dr Raj Mattu Reinstatement Committee,
PO Box 2912, Coventry. CV1 3YX
For more information contact: mail@drmrc.co.uk