By James Tozer and Claire Duffin For The Daily Mail
Published: 00:30 BST, 19 June 2019 | Updated: 00:31 BST, 19 June 2019
View
comments
Hospitals were facing pressure last night over why they had not released more information about the victims of the listeria-infected sandwiches scandal.
So far, none of the five patients who died have been identified in any way.
Their ages and sex have not been made public, nor have the conditions for which they were in hospital or when exactly they died.
The NHS trusts which treated them have cited ‘patient confidentiality’.
So far, none of the five patients who died have been identified in any way. Their ages and sex have not been made public, nor have the conditions for which they were in hospital or when exactly they died
But Tory MP Nadine Dorries, a former nurse, said: ‘The issue needs dealing with now, and we need full transparency and openness about those who have died.
‘I don’t understand why they don’t tell us the age and sex – or what conditions they were in hospital for. All these would be relevant.’
Patient confidentiality is described as ‘the cornerstone of the doctor-patient relationship’ and medical staff who breach it could face misconduct proceedings or disciplinary action. The investigation into the outbreak – linked to sandwiches from the Good Food Chain – is being managed by the £4billion taxpayer-funded quango Public Health England.
Despite the scandal having gone nationwide, PHE says it does not release personal information about patients ‘unless there is a risk to the public’s health’. A spokesman said it had not been in touch with the patients’ families at all.
