NHS Managers - Manipulation Strategies
Dr. Rita Pal writes to: Sir David Nicholson,
Richmond House,
79 Whitehall,
London SW1A 2NS
Dear Sir/ Madam,
RE: Dr Raj Mattu.
I wish to express my deep concern at the way the University Hospitals
Coventry & Warwickshire (UHCW) NHS Trust has mishandled the use of public
money in the case of the suspension and reinstatement of Dr Raj Mattu.
It is quite wrong that so much money has been spent by hospital managers on
preventing for so long this highly regarded heart specialist from doing his
job of treating patients with heart problems.
He has been completely cleared of all wrongdoing by the highest medical
authority in the land and I call for immediate action to have him fully
reskilled and restored to the position he held prior to his suspension, and
ask for a formal investigation of the Trust Managers that are responsible
for these actions and the discrimination that Dr Mattu has been seen to have
faced.
I believe that there should be a Health Select Committee Review on the issue
Whistleblowing so that recommendations can be made to encourage an
improvement in the way the system deals with doctors who raise legitimate
concerns to improve patient safety. He is currently the subject of phenomena
called Sham Peer Review which is a type to Mobbing[1]. This is not
recognised in the United Kingdom as most of the research appears to be in
the US.
Nevertheless, the manner in which management has dealt with Raj Mattu is
essentially compromising patient safety nationwide as it is sending another
message that doctors should not raise concerns due to serious reprisals.
The Trust management should be aware that they are subject to the Harassment
Act 1997[2]. In the event, the Department of Health and other authorities
cannot intervene in this matter; Dr Mattu should sue his Trust for damages
under the Harassment Act 1997. This would be a leading case for the sake of
all whistleblowers in the United Kingdom who are harassed beyond belief by
NHS management.
Currently, there remains no mechanism by which NHS management are held
accountable. Most have no training in the management of personnel and there
is no specific regulatory body to hold them accountable. There is no
revalidation or regular appraisals for dysfunctional managers. The issue of
a regulatory body for managers should be discussed in the Health Select
Committee Review on Whistleblowing. This review has been refused repeatedly
by the current government. It is notable that no whistleblower including Dr
Mattu was invited to the recent Health Select Committee Review on Patient
Safety.
There are no doubts that NHS Management have violated Dr Mattu's civil
rights. There appears to be no steps taken to review Dr Mattu's case so that
this kind of harassment in the workplace is prevented. We assume that the
NHS Trust management in Coventry is now an Occupational Health Hazard given
the serious impact of the harassment on Dr Mattu's health.
I hope you will take the necessary steps to ensure that this case is
reviewed urgently with a view to ending this unnecessary harassment of a
Consultant.
I hope to hear from you.
Regards
Dr Rita Pal
NHS Whistleblower. Ward 87 North Staffordshire NHS Trust
[1]
http://www.hospitaldr.co.uk/blogs/dr-blogs/campaign-on-bullying-needed-with-rise-of-mobbing
[2] Majrowski v Guys and St Thomas NHS Trust.
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