Former Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt has apologized to the households of Lucy Letby's victims.
Mr Hunt started his look on the Thirlwall Inquiry at Liverpool Town Hall by saying that Letby's crimes have been dedicated “on the fly”. [his] Watch”.
The investigation is looking into how Letby, 35, was able to kill seven children and try to kill seven others while working at the Countess of Chester Hospital between 2015 and 2016.
Mr Hunt apologized for “something that didn’t occur that might have doubtlessly prevented such a horrific crime”.
He stated, “Although you don't undergo a response to every thing that occurs in each ward of the NHS, [as health secretary] You have the final word accountability for the NHS”.
He stated classes weren’t realized from earlier investigations, or the right programs weren’t in place that might have prevented “this horrific tragedy”.
He stated he bore “final accountability”.
He stated: “I think one of the things that could potentially mean that what happened to the Countess of Chester had already been seen and the dots had been connected was that there were medical examiners “
The introduction of medical examiners into the NHS in England and Wales – to provide an independent investigation into the cause of death, address any concerns of bereaved families, work with coroners and review medical records – in previous health care inquests. Was recommended.
The system was first suggested in the 2004 investigation into the crimes of serial killer GP Harold Shipman and then recommended by Sir Robert Francis in his 2013 report into the neglect of hundreds of patients at the Mid Staffordshire NHS Foundation Trust, as Thirlwall was heard at the inquest.
Mr Hunt said the issue of funding medical examiners came up again for him when he was Chancellor in 2023, when he “pushed on it”.
All deaths in any health setting in England and Wales since last September that have not been investigated by a coroner are being reviewed by NHS medical examiners.
He suggested that medical examiners should be trained to look for signs or patterns of malicious harm in a health care professional's work and that having “malicious actors” like Shipman and Letby in their minds could make a “huge difference” .
An investigation into the non-statutory deployment of medical examiners in England and Wales began in 2019.
Mr Hunt said: “I think the medical examiner system, when it works well, is incredibly important for the health care system because I think it's important not only to learn from mistakes, but It is also very important for families who are deprived of having someone independent with whom they can talk and raise concerns.
“The reaction of relatives was a very important clue for them as to where things could go wrong.”
Mr Hunt also talked about the shortage of doctors.
“Historically we have never had adequate training,” he stated.
“I doubled the training places by 25% and more in 2016 [them] Again as Chancellor.
“The number of doctors is being increased, but the problem is that it takes seven years – the first new doctors did not come on board until last year since the 2016 increase.”
The inquiry is ongoing.
With inputs from BBC
