NHS Trust Dismisses 11 Staff for Illegally Accessing Nottingham Attack Victims’ Records

A British hospital trust has dismissed 11 staff members for illegally accessing the medical records of victims of the Nottingham attacks in June 2023, the trust confirmed

Valdo Calocane killed two 19-year-old students, Barnaby Webber and Grace O’Malley-Kumar, and 65-year-old caretaker Ian Coates before attempting to kill three other people in the city

Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust (NUH) said the dismissals resulted from an investigation into allegations that the victims’ medical files were accessed without legitimate authority

An additional 14 employees received written warnings but remain in their positions, the trust added

Those investigated include doctors, nurses, registered medical professionals and administrative staff

The trust did not disclose the specific roles of the dismissed employees

Emma Webber, mother of victim Barnaby Webber, said the families are disgusted by the scale of misconduct and disputed the trust’s assertion that 48 staff members accessed the records legitimately

Dr Manjeet Shehmar, medical director at NUH, apologized to the victims’ families and said the disciplinary actions demonstrate that the trust will not tolerate prying into medical records

The families of Webber, O’Malley-Kumar and Coates have been informed of the outcomes

“The families of Ian, Grace and Barnaby have had to endure much pain and heartache, and I am truly sorry that the actions of some of our staff have added to that,” Shehmar said in a statement

“To access the medical records of our patients without a legitimate reason is totally unacceptable and we are doing all we can to identify where and how that has happened,” Shehmar said

She added: “It is essential that access to patient records is lawful, justified and directly related to their role. By accessing records inappropriately, staff are damaging the valuable contributions made by those colleagues providing care for those patients. In those cases where it does happen, I hope that this is a very clear reminder that we will take appropriate action.”

The trust has also notified the Information Commissioner’s Office and Nottinghamshire Police, and said it will pursue follow-up actions with independent regulators including the Nursing and Midwifery Council and the General Medical Council

In a separate statement, Webber said: “To learn that 11 staff have been dismissed and 14 faced disciplinary actions is shocking. What is more shocking is the scale of misconduct – 150 members of staff accessed the records. The process is not yet complete so we anticipate these numbers to escalate considerably.”

“The trust is also aware that we do not accept their findings that 48 members of staff had legitimate access. The number is far too high. The rationale given for legitimacy does not stack up and we are formally challenging this in order to scrutinise properly,” Webber said

“It’s heartbreaking that on top of our tragic loss, we’ve also had to face such appalling additional failures by members of staff who should know better. I’d ask them all to consider how they would feel if it was their child or father,” she said

Investigations continue into allegations that staff also inappropriately accessed the files of surviving victims, including Wayne Birkett, Sharon Miller and Marcin Gawronski

Shehmar is scheduled to testify later this month at the inquiry into the attacks, which is examining the lead-up to the violence and decisions taken in its aftermath. Calocane received an indefinite hospital order in January 2024 after pleading guilty to manslaughter by diminished responsibility and attempted murder.