Photo Credit Birmingham Mail Orthopaedic surgeon Habib Rahman
More than 200 patients who were treated by consultant orthopaedic surgeon Habib Rahman at the Spire Parkway hospital in Solihull have been contacted about the concerns
Hundreds of patients have been recalled after concerns were raised that a Solihull medic had been performing unnecessary operations at a private hospital. Over 200 patients who were treated by consultant orthopaedic surgeon Habib Rahman at the Spire Parkway hospital in Solihull have been contacted about the concerns, according to Sky News.
Mr Rahman has also worked at University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust, which has confirmed that none of his NHS patients have been recalled. The consultant iis currently being investigated by the General Medical Council and is working with “restrictions” at Heartlands Hospital and Solihull Hospital.
In a patient recall letter shared with Thomsons Solicitors, Spire states it had commissioned the Royal College of Surgeons to conduct an independent review into Mr Habib’s practice, which resulted in a recommended review of patients who received shoulder manipulation surgery from Mr Rahman to “assess whether their care was appropriate”.
This latest report of potential wrongdoing by surgeons at Spire Healthcare hospitals comes just weeks before the findings of the Independent Inquiry into breast surgeon Ian Paterson are due to be published.
The Spire Parkway was one of the hospitals where the disgraced surgeon worked. Mr Paterson was jailed in May 2017 at Nottingham Crown Court after being found guilty of 17 counts of wounding with intent, and three of unlawful wounding against ten former patients. Many others were affected by his surgical spree.
Linda Millband from Thompsons Solicitors, who is representing a number of patients, said: “A second patient recall and another rogue surgeon operating unnecessarily at Mr Paterson’s old private hospital suggests systemic failings. “We are aware of this issue because, on receiving a recall letter, an ex-patient connected the dots between Spire, Paterson and our role in bringing him to justice, and reached out to us for advice.
“There is no evidence that Spire has publicly acknowledged the recall on its website.”She continued: “We currently have a handful of clients but they could be the tip of the iceberg, so we encourage others who feel they have received similar unnecessary care from Habib Rahman or indeed any other surgeon at a Spire hospital to come forward.”
A spokesman for Spire Healthcare said: “In accordance with our strict patient safety standards, we first restricted Mr Rahman’s shoulder practice in September 2018, before suspending his full Practising Privileges in January 2019 and subsequently withdrawing them in May 2019.
“During that period, we invited the Royal College of Surgeons to independently review Mr Rahman’s practice, liaising closely with his employing NHS Trust, the CQC and GMC on the output of that review. “Following the Royal College’s guidance, we wrote to all shoulder patients who were identified as requiring follow-up to offer them a consultation with an independent surgeon to review their care and to understand more about their post-operative recovery. That process is still ongoing.
We would encourage patients who have received a letter to follow-up on our offer of a free review by an independent specialist to ensure their care has been as expected.”
Thompsons Solicitors is urging anyone who has received a recall letter from Spire or had shoulder manipulation surgery from Mr Rahman to come forward.
A notice on The Spire’s website is asking any patients of Mr Rahman to email them directly.
Source: Birmingham Mail