By Anna Whittaker, Local Democracy Reporter
Bereaved families say they are “deeply frustrated” by the planned retirement of the medical director at Nottingham’s major hospitals because they fear he will not be held properly accountable for a series of fatal failings in maternity care.
The retirement of Dr Keith Girling, who has been in the role at Nottingham University Hospitals Trust since 2017, was announced in an email to staff earlier this month. He will leave in summer 2024.
The announcement was made as experienced midwife Donna Ockenden is leading the largest maternity care review in NHS history at the trust, covering cases dating back to 2012.
The review currently includes the cases of 1,808 families, some of whom experienced stillbirths, neonatal deaths, and the deaths and injuries of mothers.
Watchdog the Care Quality Commission (CQC) now rates the maternity units at the Queen’s Medical Centre and Nottingham City Hospital as ‘requires improvement’. Previously services were rated ‘inadequate’.
Nottinghamshire Police has said in spring 2024 it will start a criminal investigation into past maternity care at the hospitals.
Now, four families have come forward to raise concerns about the timing of Dr Girling’s departure because they believe it could affect him being held accountable for maternity failings which have happened during his time at the trust. One family said they believed he should have already been sacked.
Dr Girling’s role includes being responsible for patient care and clinical standards at both the Queen’s Medical Centre and Nottingham City Hospital.
Responding to the families’ concerns, Anthony May, the trust’s Chief Executive since 2022, said he was committed to listening to families and making changes.
Dr Jack Hawkins and Sarah Hawkins’ daughter Harriet was stillborn in 2016. A review into her care later found her death was “almost certainly preventable”.
The parents, who both used to work for the trust, said they were “disappointed and deeply frustrated” by the news of Dr Girling’s retirement.
They say they met Dr Girling following Harriet’s death in 2017 and sent him a letter in April 2018, but feel he failed to listen properly to them.
In a response letter seen by the Local Democracy Reporting Service dated June 2023, Dr Girling apologised to the Hawkins, saying he should have shown them more care.
He wrote: “You described to me in some detail the impact the conversations you had with the previous medical director and other executive officers about Harriet’s death and the effect this had on you both.
“I failed to listen properly to that, and to then approach matters with any more empathy and care than had been shown to you previously, and for that, I am unreservedly sorry.”
Dr Hawkins and Mrs Hawkins said they did not accept the apology.
They told the Local Democracy Reporting Service: “It appears to us that there is no accountability around maternity failures.
“We worry that it means maternity safety has not been given the priority it should have, which is shown in the sheer number of people in the Ockenden review.
“Dr Girling’s role as chief doctor and a board member is so clearly one of providing safe care.”
They said there needs to be an “urgent investigation” into whether Dr Girling and the wider trust at the time should have done more to improve maternity care earlier.
Wynter Andrews died 23 minutes after she was born at Nottingham Queen’s Medical Centre in 2019, in what was described by a coroner as “a clear and obvious case of neglect”.
The hospital trust was later fined £800,000 by the CQC for failings in care.
Wynter’s parents Gary and Sarah Andrews say she was born at a maternity unit which was “perilously unsafe”.
They said trust leadership, including Dr Girling, should have acted on concerns around maternity services much sooner.
They pointed out that a year before Wynter’s death in 2018, midwifery staff at the trust wrote a joint letter to senior management speaking out about the way the units were being run.
The letter warned of a “dangerous situation that is developing” in maternity.
It added: “If the situation outlined above continues, mistakes will be inevitable, the consequences of which will be tragic for families, costly to the trust and
disastrous to midwives’ careers.”
Mr and Mrs Andrews said: “At the time of Wynter’s birth we didn’t anticipate just how dangerous the unit was.
“Over subsequent months and years, the true extent of the horrors would become clear.
“It is now abundantly clear that senior managers were warned of the dangerous situation developing, and were warned by their own staff of a potential disaster.
“Our daughter was sadly the disaster grimly foreseen by midwifery staff in the months prior to her avoidable death.
“Dr Girling was medical director before, and at the time of, our daughter’s death.
“He is now, as far as we can identify, the last remaining senior leader still in post at the trust that could have taken action to prevent her death from this time period.”
Quinn Lias Parker was born in July 2021 and died two days later. A coroner later criticised the hospital trust over a lack of information provided to parents Ryan Parker and Emmie Studencki before Quinn died.
Mr Parker said: “I want Dr Girling to be out of the organisation and investigated. I’m pleased he is retiring in a way because his hands are off things.”
The parents of baby Ladybird, whose daughter died in 2019, are currently going through legal action with the trust. They have asked not to be named.
They told the Local Democracy Reporting Service they received an apology from Dr Girling for the loss of their daughter two years after she died.
They said they were “extremely troubled and concerned” at the news of his retirement.
They said: “Dr Girling has the lead responsibility for professional standards. We want accountability and he should have been sacked.”
Earlier this year, the trust committed to a new “honest and transparent” relationship with the families whose lives have been affected by maternity failings.
Chief Executive Anthony May has previously said any concerns raised about the conduct and behaviour of any individuals will be dealt with. He has also publicly committed to work with any police investigation.
In response to the concerns raised about Dr Giring’s departure, Mr May said: “I know that we have failed many women and families and I reiterate my sincere apologies for the pain and suffering that this has caused. A large number of families have been kind enough to meet with me and share their experiences. I’m grateful to them for their honest feedback and I admire their ongoing courage.
“We are fully committed to the review and remain in regular contact with Donna and her team, who share feedback and learning with us at the earliest opportunity.
“I have committed from the very start of the review to act on all matters raised. The families, women using our maternity services and our staff have my commitment that we will listen and take action on all feedback in a timely way.”
