News

The Scottish Hospitals Inquiry will hear from affected patients and families when the first diet of oral hearings begins on Monday 20 September.

The independent Inquiry is investigating the construction of the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital Campus (QEUH) in Glasgow and the Royal Hospital for Children and Young People and Department of Clinical Neurosciences (RHCYP/DCN) in Edinburgh.

Earlier this year, Lord Brodie, Chair of the Scottish Hospitals Inquiry, made it clear that the first priority of the Inquiry is to understand the experiences of affected patients and their families as a result of issues at both hospitals.

Lord Brodie said: “No other group has been more affected by these issues than the patients and families from whom we will be hearing in the next few weeks.

“Their experiences will help inform future lines of investigation as we turn our attention to subsequent phases of the Inquiry.

“This first diet of hearings is the culmination of a year of preparation, providing us with a foundation to ensure that the Inquiry is led by the evidence it uncovers during the course of its lifetime.

“Ultimately, our role is to understand what went wrong with the construction of these hospitals so lessons can be learned to prevent the recurrence of such issues in the future.”

Hearings will take place at the Inquiry’s office located at 20 West Register Street, EH2 2AA Edinburgh and will run as follows:

• Monday 20 September – hearings begin with opening statements
• Hearings to run from Monday to Friday, from Monday 20 September to Friday 8 October (3 weeks)
• Break for two weeks from Monday 11 to Friday 22 October
• Hearings to run from Monday to Friday, from 25 October to Friday 05 November (2 weeks)

The Scottish Hospitals Inquiry will determine how issues relating to adequacy of ventilation, water contamination and other matters impacted on patient safety and care and whether these issues could have been prevented.

It will also examine the impact of these issues on patients and their families and whether the buildings provide a suitable environment for the delivery of safe, effective care. It will make recommendations to ensure any past mistakes are not repeated in future NHS infrastructure projects.

A weekly timetable will be published on the Inquiry’s website www.hospitalsinquiry.scot detailing each week's programme.

Inquiry proceedings can be viewed remotely via this link.

ENDS

For further information please contact:

Graham McKendry / Heather Marston
3x1 Group
Tel: 07931 382 270 / 07824 817 977
SHI@3x1.com