The BBC and
Guardian have reported the findings of an inquiry commissioned by North West London Strategic Health Authority (now NHS London) into the behaviour of the manager of a NHS eating disorder clinic who targeted and abused vulnerable young women.
The inquiry has blamed poor management, missed opportunities and the reluctance of the nurses' victims to come forward on the failure to detect the actions of a nurse working at the Peter Dally Clinic in Pimlico, central London who allegedly preyed on women with eating disorders. The report describs Mr David Britten as a "manipulative predator who represented a clear danger to women".
Apologising on behalf of NHS London, chief nurse Trish Morris-Thompson said: "As a nurse and a midwife, I am appalled by David Britten's actions and that they went unchecked for so long.
"He abused not just these women but also his position of professional trust".
She added: "This report has lessons for NHS organisations around the country and it is my job to ensure that the lessons are widely disseminated. They will be." The report said although the NHS took appropriate steps and dismissed Mr Britten, the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) was criticised for failing to suspend or strike him off the nursing register until 2004, despite the claims against him since 2002.
Harman & Harman acted in this case but Leigh Day & Co has represented many victims of abuse in the past.
Maria Panteli, a solicitor in the human rights department at Leigh Day & Co, has successfully brought claims for damages for patients who have suffered such abuse when trying to seek treatment for their mental illness. An award of damages and often an apology from the Trust go some way to reflecting what had been done to the patient was wrong and not their fault. She says:
“The power differential between a nurse and a vulnerable psychiatric patient is so great that any sexual contact between them cannot be a mutual act. A patient cannot give properly informed consent and the situation is enormously destructive. A patient is left feeling confused, fearful and a great deal of shame about the incidents and their inability to stop them happening. By having to conceal the relationship not only to their family but also to other health professionals, the relationship had a drastic effect on their mental health. Instead of showing the normal signs of recovery, their health deteriorates even further."
Please contact
Maria Panteli for more information on 020 7650 1200.
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