Dr Hadiza Bawa-Garba wins appeal against being struck off

It was right to reinstate her. If they got rid of every doctor who made a mistake, we'd have no NHS. I can understand the mothers grief though, and feel desperately sorry for her.

Poor, poor mother but the right decision to reinstate.
There are lots of discussions about learning lessons from this sad case but surely one important one is that the NHS cannot continue to function when staff are so overstretched!

I didn't see the Panorama programme but agree it was right to reinstate her with checks in place hopefully. I am so tired of hearing that statement ' lessons will be learned ' then nothing changes. There is far too much expected of junior doctors and nurses at present.
I too feel so sorry so for the family of the little boy.

It is an acknowledgement that the overstretched system must carry some of the blame.

Mrsmopp I was just poised to write the exact words you wrote
Doctors are far from infallible, mistakes are made We somehow think that doctors can cure everything and the fact is they can’t I don’t think any of us can understand the pressure the long hours and the lack of back up involved
I might be wrong but I m sure I read or heard where this lady was that day responsible for a number of different wards
I too can feel for this family but the little boy was seriously ill with sepsis and a cardiac arrest we know how fast sepsis can kill

I was her first day back after maternity leave. There was no consultant available that night - I think he too had been double booked. She was in charge of several wards and the computer system failed that ought to have flagged up a dangerous condition.

She has always admitted she made mistakes. Never tried to deny that. But I was impressed with her honesty and how she actually came on the programme to discuss the intricacies of the case.

Not all the mistakes were hers. Someone told the mother that she could administer one of her boy’s regular medication herself which ought not to have been given under the circumstances.

Basically she failed to diagnose sepsis. The child presented with sickness and diarrhoea. Apparently 14,00 people die from sepsis every year in the UK. So it looks as if there is serious under-diagnosing of this condition,

I didn’t see the programme but read this and weep
www.bbc.co.uk/news/resources/idt-sh/the_struck_off_doctor
Possibly the most sickening thing, apart from the way the prosecution used Dr Baba-Garwa’s reflective log (where she had written down everything she felt she could have done differently) to place the blame squarely on her and away from the system failures within the hospital, which included very low staffing levels, delays in receiving the results of blood tests, and a computer failure which meant that records couldn’t be accessed, was the role of the consultant who should have been there, caring for patients and supporting his junior staff, but had ‘double-booked’ himself and was miles away in Warwick supposedly teaching.
And a few months after Jack Adcock’s death, he moved back to Ireland and wouldn’t contribute to the Panorama programme. What a surprise!

Crossed posts OldMeg

Jane had you seen the programme and listened to her you would have felt such sympathy. She broke down and had a little weep at one time, not when talking about her ordeal but when talking about Jack.

oldMeg? I do. And I cannot help wondering how many junior doctors (and nurses) will decide it’s time for a career move awayfrom the NHS.

I didn't see the tv program but have read enough about it to consider that the lifetime ban on practicing as a doctor as the result of this very sad incident, was far too draconian.

While the doctor made errors, so many were made by the hospital and the absent consultant that I think the original decision to ban her from practicing for a year was sufficient. A lifetime ban was outrageous.

I saw the Panorama programme. I was impressed by her honesty and demeanour as well as her courage in contributing to it. Before I saw the programme, I admit to being swayed by the mother's very understandable distress. On seeing the programme, I feel the correct outcome was obtained in the end. Poor family, poor doctor Bawa Garba.

We should be concerned at the state the nhs is in.

It's a difficult one. I for one wouldn't want to be seen by this doctor either for myself or a child having just gone through a recent complaint which, in all fairness, resulted in the Dr receiving further training. It is, I agree, the system that is at fault and the pressure that doctors are under and the fact that everyone makes mistakes at some point. Unfortunately the mistakes made by a doctor can be devastating. The NHS really does need a proper revamp to cope with the situations it is faced with today.

I for one wouldn't want to be seen by this doctor either for myself or a child

What happened to Dr Bawa-Garba that day could have happened to scores of junior doctors, goldengirl.
It has been noted on several occasions that prior to, and ever since, Jack’s death, she has had an unblemished record.

I would be happy to be treated by her, and to have my DGCs treated by her too. Senior doctors who have worked with her have said the same thing.
I hope she feels able to resume practice, but fear that like Adam Kay she will be too traumatised by her experiences to carry on.

That poor doctor was failed at every turn. DH nearly died from sepsis in May. He was in hospital for a month with a team of doctors treating him. Every possible test was available and the positive outcome was a huge relief to all.

I can't imagine being with a relative in a hospital where the general feeling is of lack of support, system failures and indecision. I can understand the mother's anguish but I do hope the doctor will be able to overcome this experience and regain her confidence.

There has been some ill- informed hysteria on MSM today about this case (quelle surprise) - she still has to serve the remainder of her 12 month suspension towards the end of which her case will be reviewed. At that review she will have to demonstrate that she is fit to return to practice with or without conditions. Btw if a doctor is struck off, after 5 years they can apply to come back ( but this is rare I believe). I’d like to know what lessons the ‘system’ has learned. For example - we are told that the IT system was down and so she could not access the blood test results - surely if a result shows sepsis, the path lab should immediately telephone the result and never just rely on the computer?

The consultant who was supposed to be on duty - and carries the ultimate responsibility - had "double-booked" and was not there (indeed miles away) as he should have been - and he gets off scot-free. How can this be right?

I am a retired medic. My feeling is 'but for the grace of God' My friends and I can all look back at cases where we feel we could/ should have done better. The pressure of work was overwhelming at times and doctors ,along with everyone else , make bad decisions sometimes or miss something sadly.
The poor doctor , just back from maternity leave, should definitely have had a senior doctor on the site.

Its not very reassuring to think that ones loved one is a case of 'should/could' have done better.
I didn't watch the programme but it seems there were a few mitigating circumstances, and this doctor took the blame.

i think you are very grudging MissAdventure. There were a lot of mitigating circumstances, computers not working, a consultant who should have been there absence. She was not only doing her own job but covering for others as well.

I doubt there is a doctor in the world, let alone Britain that has not at some time in their carier been in the should/could have done better category

The doctors that scare me are the ones that think they are God and can admit no mistakes.

Yes, I suppose I am.
I just lost my daughter last year.
I would be absolutely devastated to think it was notched up as 'could have done better'.
I expect that colours my view.
I'm not blaming the doctor at all, but discussions have been on here about the need for 'joined up' care.

We are all human. My OH was a doctor and had to give it up as the necessity to be perfect at all times was destroying him.

Everyone makes mistakes and doctors are no different to any other human being. They strive to be perfect in all they do, but we have to recognise that mistakes happen.

What helps to prevent these mistakes is proper back-up for doctors: a senior available at all times; a computer system that works so that technology-reliant results etc are available; fail-safe checks that the right patient is being treated; lab technicians freely available round the clock etc.

Our health service needs good protocols and systems to back up the medics. With budgets so tight these fail - and fail the front line staff as well as the patients.

It is unrealistic to expect doctors to be superhuman.

Can any one of us say that we never made the slightest error or misjudgement in the course of our careers? I cannot.

That was my point; I feel the doctor was made a scapegoat for systems which need looking at.
She was failed, as well as the little boy who lost his life. (even though the outlook for him was probably shaky anyway)

In 2013 a public health consultant, Dr Ronald Hsu, was asked to conduct a review and investigation into the number of unexpected deaths across Leicestershire including Leicester Royal infirmary.
His team found that the hospital’s rates were 25% higher than they should have been and that these patients had received poor care which contributed to their deaths.
After he had submitted his report to NHS England he was asked to make many changes to it, make it less hard hitting so as not to destroy faith in the NHS
This tinkering of the report is reminiscent of the sexed up dodgy dossier that directly contributed to the death of Dr David Kelly in 2003.
I find manipulation of the evidence in this way far more sinister, and far more undermining of my trust in the NHS, than a doctor who makes an honest mistake and then reflects on what happened, to improve her clinical judgment.