Speaking up for patient safety: Rebecca Wight in conversation with Peter Duffy and Helen Hughes

Summary

In this podcast interview series, NHS whistleblower Peter Duffy and Patient Safety Learning’s Chief Executive Helen Hughes explore how the healthcare system responds when its staff raise concerns about patient safety. In each episode, Helen and Peter interview someone who has spoken up about patient safety issues in healthcare organisations, or who works to help staff raise concerns where they see unsafe care.

In this episode, Helen and Peter speak to Rebecca Wight, a nurse consultant practitioner. Rebecca talks about her time at the The Christie, a cancer treatment centre in Manchester, and what happened to her when she tried to raise patient safety concerns about a colleague. Despite escalating these concerns to management and clinical leadership, Rebecca reported being ignored, having her concerns dismissed as a personal attack, and facing a "brick wall" from leadership.

Rebecca reflects on the toll the process took on her and her family, her experience of going through an employment tribunal and why there needs to be more support for people who raise concerns within their organisation.

Content

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Transcript of the interview

Read a blog from Peter and Helen about the interview series

About the Author

Rebecca Wight has been a NHS nurse for 18 years, having qualified in 2008. She spent her first few years as a staff nurse before doing advanced clinical practice training and qualified as an advanced practitioner in 2014 where she then joined The Christie NHS Foundation Trust. Rebecca is married and mother of two young children.