NHS trust apologises over £115,000 paid to boss off work for year
AN under-fire hospital trust has issued a public apology after it was revealed it had paid a top boss £115,000 – despite him being off work for more than a year.
Cash-strapped Worcestershire Acute Hospitals NHS Trust had authorised the annual salary payment to absent chief operating officer Stewart Messer, who has been off work since May 2015 for unspecified reasons.
It was revealed last week that the man brought in as cover, Rab McEwan, had also been paid £190,000 in taxpayer-funded wages.
Some 16 months on, the freelance employee remains in the key post, while Mr Messer also continues to be paid.
The financial situation comes as the Trust revealed it was looking at a £59 million deficit for 2015/16 in its latest annual report.
Caragh Merrick, recently appointed trust chairman said: “I fully understand the public concern and media interest in this story.
“It relates to a situation where the Trust had to act quickly to cover positions when executive directors were unable to work for various reasons.
“I took up my post as chairman on September 12 and I am not in a position to speculate on what was intended or communicated orally in meetings in the past. However, I am very concerned by the issues raised.
“It is important that the trust has the support and confidence of the local communities we serve and that is something that I know is damaged when arrangements, no matter how legitimate, are not fully disclosed on a timely basis and I would like to apologise for the upset this has caused our staff and the community we serve.
“Under my leadership I am taking steps to ensure we engage with the public and stakeholders more regularly and more effectively, to ensure that information is made available in a timely and transparent manner.”