NHS case highlights whistleblowing legislation
April 20, 2009
In the news last week was a story about Margaret Haywood, a former NHS worker who was struck off after secretly filming a BBC Panorama programme about the treatment of elderly patients. The programme was filmed in 2005 at the Royal Sussex Hospital in Brighton, and highlighted some horrific practices in the treatment of elderly people.
Haywood was found guilty of misconduct and was struck off, as the disciplinary panel felt that she had failed to carry out her duties as a nurse, because she prioritised her work for the filmmakers over her nursing obligations. It was also found that Haywood compromised patient confidentiality because she filmed them without their knowledge or consent. Although Haywood admitted this, she denied prioritising her filming duties over her nursing duties, and said that she had no option but to make the film, because neither her line manager or her ward manager had listened to her concerns about poor patient care. Haywood said that she knew the risk she was taking but thought it was worthwhile and necessary.
The Conservative party have highlighted that there is a ‘closed culture’ within the NHS which makes it hard for staff to speak out about organisational failings or poor practice, and there are calls for a review of the Public Interest Disclosure Act (PIDA) which protects whistle blowers in the workplace. However the Department of Health have said that this legislation is sufficient for the job, and have highlighted:
“The new NHS Constitution includes an explicit right for staff who report wrong doing to be protected and we have set up a special helpline for whistle-blowers which treats calls in confidence.”
Although Haywood’s cause is a worthy one, and it would be unfair if she has lost her employment because she decided t speak up and highlight the awful standard of care in the hospital, I’m not sure what she did is actually covered under whistle blowing legislation. To be protected, whistle blowers need to follow certain procedures in order to make their complaint, and are normally required to complain to a particular body regarding a wrong doing (for example, if they were outlining fraudulent activities, they would probably go to the police) – so exposing the problem on a national television programme is probably not covered. Even though Haywood had spoken to managers on her ward about the treatment of elderly patients, she could have exhausted a few other avenues – e.g. a written complaint to someone higher – before going to Panorama, which is basically what the disciplinary panel said.
The Public Interest Disclosure Act is a complicated piece of legislation and it is a good idea for companies to have a specific whistleblowing policy outlining who is protected, and the procedure to follow when making a disclosure or complaint in order to receive the protection.
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