Sacked hospital chiefs lose their appeals
BOSSES at Southport Hospital have had appeals against their sackings dismissed.
Hospital chief executive Jonathan Parry was suspended in August 2015, alongside three senior colleagues: chief operating officer Sheilah Finnegan; HR director Sharon Partington and deputy performance director Richard McCarthy. The paid suspensions lasted 14 months, costing taxpayers more than £500,000m.
Mr Parry was dismissed without severance pay last October.
Ms Partington resigned before facing a disciplinary panel, however, due to the nature of the allegations and her seniority, the Trust was obliged to complete the disciplinary process.
Following the hearing, it was determined that she would have been dismissed as a consequence of gross misconduct had she remained in employment.
Hospital bosses confirmed appeal process against the rulings on Mr Parry and Mrs Partington had concluded on Wednesday.
A disciplinary panel had reviewed 21 allegations of misconduct against Mr Parry, finding evidence on 11 counts of misconduct, seven of which amounted to gross misconduct.
The appeal panel, however, determined that Mr Parry’s appeal was upheld in part, finding that, of the original 11 counts, five amounted to gross misconduct and the remaining six to misconduct.
The hearing reviewed eight allegations of misconduct against Ms Partington, finding evidence on six allegations of misconduct, one of which amounted to gross misconduct.
The findings of the appeal panel were that the sanction of gross misconduct should be overturned and replaced with a finding of three counts of misconduct.