Probe claims and protect workers

NHS staff have played a vital role in exposing deadly failures at the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital in Glasgow.

An anonymous whistleblower revealed to the Record in 2019 that a family had not been told the truth about the death of their child two years earlier.

These revelations related to the tragic death of 10-year-old cancer patient Milly Main at the QEUH.

A probe later vindicated the whistleblower by ruling that Milly’s infection was “probably” linked to the troubled hospital.

Now, fresh allegations about the QEUH have been made by clinicians.

They contacted Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar to say that two more children died after picking up infections.

The first case centres on allegations a child cancer patient died after acquiring the deadly bug aspergillus.

The second claim is that in the last two months, a child in the paediatric hospital acquired a waterborne infection – just like Milly.

The aspergillus claim is chilling as it is said to have occurred around the same time, and in the same ward, as the tragic case of Andrew Slorance.

Dad-of-five Andrew died at the QEUH in December 2020 after contracting Covid, but his widow Louise says there were references to aspergillus in his medical notes.

Another worrying aspect of the clinicians’ claims is their fear of retribution due to a “culture of bullying and intimidation”.

Staff must be able to air their concerns freely without feeling like they will be punished.

The latest bombshell claims must be investigated urgently and the staff who came forward protected.