Summary
The Thirlwall Inquiry has been set up to examine events at the Countess of Chester Hospital and their implications following the trial, and subsequent convictions, of former neonatal nurse Lucy Letby of murder and attempted murder of babies at the hospital. This document sets out the terms of reference for this inquiry, following an engagement process led by the inquiry’s independent chair, Lady Justice Thirlwall, with the affected families and other stakeholders.
Content
The Terms of Reference set out that the Thirlwall Inquiry will investigate three broad areas:
1. The experiences of the Countess of Chester Hospital and other relevant NHS services, of all the parents of the babies named in the indictment.
2. The conduct of those working at the Countess of Chester Hospital, including the board, managers, doctors, nurses and midwives with regard to the actions of Lucy Letby while she was employed there as a neonatal nurse and subsequently, including:
- whether suspicions should have been raised earlier, whether Lucy Letby should have been suspended earlier and whether the police and other external bodies should have been informed sooner of suspicions about her.
- the responses to concerns raised about Lucy Letby from those with management responsibilities within the trust.
- whether the trust’s culture, management and governance structures and processes contributed to the failure to protect babies from Lucy Letby.
3. The effectiveness of NHS management and governance structures and processes, external scrutiny and professional regulation in keeping babies in hospital safe and well looked after, whether changes are necessary and, if so, what they should be, including how accountability of senior managers should be strengthened. This section will include a consideration of NHS culture.
The inquiry chair will provide a final report (and if appropriate, interim reports) to the Secretary of State as soon as is practically possible. She will make recommendations as she considers appropriate.
Related reading
0 Comments
Recommended Comments
There are no comments to display.
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now