Sunday 17 July 2022 03:33 PM Surgeon responsible for death of patient,17, faces probe after accusations of ... trends now

A surgeon who was branded a bully is facing a probe after an NHS report found his 'unacceptable and unjustifiable' actions lead to the death of a 17-year-old patient.

Surgeon John Bradley Williamson, a former president of the British Scoliosis Society, is accused of running a 'toxic' team with 'absolute power' and having mistakes covered up due to his relationship with a nurse.

The 65-year-old was found to have 'directly contributed' to the death of Catherine O'Connor in February 2007,  according to an NHS-commissioned report.

Catherine was wheelchair-bound after being born with spina bifida, but was looking forward to the surgery to correct it, The Sunday Times reported.

But she died on the operating table at Salford Royal Hospital in Manchester following catastrophic blood loss.

But only now has an NHS-commissioned report - the current Patient Safety Look Back Review - concluded Williamson's actions, which included not having a second consultant surgeon or enough blood, 'directly contributed' to Catherine O'Connor's death. 

Dr Williamson was suspended in 2014 and sacked in 2015 for inappropriate behaviour towards a female member of staff not for clinical reasons.

The General Medical Council said that Williamson was still registered with a licence to practise and was not under investigation. He continues to see patients privately although he no longer carries out surgery and charges £350 an hour as an expert witness. 

Catherine's case is one of more than a hundred of Williamson's being looked by Salford Royal Hospital in the review, following allegations by whistleblowers of a cover-up by managers.

Williamson specialised in surgery to treat scoliosis, a condition where the spine twists and curves to the side.

His patients have been described as being left paralysed or in severe pain as a result of misplaced spinal screws and others being rushed back to theatre for life-saving surgery, according to an internal list produced by clinicians as long ago as 2014.

Leaked minutes seen by The Sunday Times from December 2021 reveal his colleague's described him as 'clinically incompetent' and a 'dictatorial bully', who ran his department with 'absolute power' because he was having a relationship with the department's nurse manager.

Staff also claimed that reports into mistakes 'went missing, disappeared or were downgraded' while other staff were threatened when they voiced concerns.

A fellow surgeon claimed that Williamson left an operation to catch a flight that took off before the patient had left the operating table, according to the minutes.

In 2014, the list of allegedly harmed patients was handed to managers but staff claim it resulted in no action.

It is understood a 2016 investigation was dropped by the regulator because of a lack of evidence and witnesses failing to co-operate.

A senior clinician, speaking to the Sunday Times on condition of anonymity, said: 'As clinicians we've tried hard within the hospital to bring this to light but it's been a very slow and painful process. I think the trust has lied to patients and there has been a cover-up.

'Catherine O'Connor's family were effectively told their daughter wasn't strong enough for the operation but that simply wasn't true. There could be patients living with complications who don't know it's as a result of their surgery.

'There needs to be a full recall of patients, we've been calling for that for a long time. Not just patients at Salford Royal but also the children's hospital in Manchester where he also operated.

'There needs to be a full independent inquiry into how this has been handled by the trust over the years since concerns were first raised and why it has never been dealt with.'

Catherine's mother Ursula and her husband Bill, who died in 2018, had doubts about what happened to their daughter but never knew they were not the only family with concerns.

O'Connor, 71, from Atherton, near Manchester, said at the inquest that year she was told she died because she could not cope with the blood loss.

'We have never been told that there should have been a second consultant surgeon,' she said.