First Minister Humza Yousaf has confirmed there will be a public inquiry into the Sam Eljamel scandal.
The development comes a week after bombshell new report slammed NHS Tayside chiefs over their handling of the disgraced surgeon.
Management at the health board face criticism over their June 2013 decision to place the rogue doctor under light-touch supervision rather than suspending him.
He went on to carry out more than 100 surgeries while being monitored by health chiefs, who have now apologised to patients operated on by him during the ‘supervision’ period.
Eljamel – whose botched procedures left some patients with life-changing injuries – was eventually suspended in December 2013.
Who are the key figures in the scandal?
Sam Eljamel
Eljamel – full name Muftah Salem Eljamel – botched dozens of operations and left patients with lifelong injuries between 1995 and 2013 while working in Dundee as a neurosurgeon.
Just weeks before he was placed under supervision, NHS Tayside blamed the quality of junior doctors for the “significant pressure” he was under.
Minutes from a June 2013 meeting read: “We accept that Professor Eljamel had been under significant pressure in recent years with his clinical practice due to a culmination of factors.
“These included a deterioration in the quantity and quality of junior staff support, an increased throughput of patients and the pressures of waiting times guarantees.”
We told last year how Eljamel bought a “Man of the Year” award to boost his CV.
He got the “honour” from the American Biographical Institute, a defunct company which earned revenue by handing out paid-for awards.
The Libyan – believed to be working in a hospital in his homeland after selling his house in Newport-on-Tay, Fife, in 2018 – also lied on his own website about completing a specialist US degree.
In December 2021, he was ordered to pay a former patient £2.8 million in compensation after leaving her with serious disabilities.
A judge ruled Elijamel was entirely to blame for Carolyn Almond-Roots developing rare spinal condition Cauda Equina syndrome in 2013 following his botched surgery.
Gerry Marr
He was NHS Tayside chief executive during the period in which Eljamel was placed under light-touch supervision rather than being suspended.
The due diligence report now firmly turns the focus on management decision-making during his reign.
Marr – appointed in February 2011 – left Scotland for Sydney after announcing his retirement in August 2013 and is now the manager director of Marr Associates.
Before that he was the chief executive of South Eastern Sydney Local Health District.
NHS Tayside hit the headlines in January 2013 after it emerged his wife Carrie secured a director’s post – which wasn’t advertised externally or internally – after a management shake-up.
Marr, who enjoyed a career in nursing before climbing the ladder, was given an OBE for services to the NHS in 2014 in the Queen’s birthday honours list.
Philip McLoughlin
According to Freedom of Information documents, the former NHS Tayside clinical director was charged with dealing with Eljamel as complaints escalated.
He approved consultant neurosurgeon David Mowle to monitor the surgeon on June 25, 2013.
A section of a Royal College of Surgeons report on Eljamel released later that year states Mr Mowle joined him on his ward rounds every Tuesday morning as he spoke to patients in Ninewells Hospital and reviewed their care.
The pair would then hold a detailed discussion about Eljamel’s cases.
But the report says Mr Mowle did not feel there was “any safety issue with Sam continuing his regular on-call duties” during this period.
Philip McLoughlin left NHS Tayside in 2016 after 15 years and is now a consultant maxillofacial surgeon with Somerset NHS Foundation Trust.
Whistleblowers
In June, three surgeons claimed NHS Tayside managers knew about concerns over the disgraced doctor in 2009 – four years before his suspension.
They allege doctors who raised the alarm were shut down, Eljamel regularly left the operating table to do private work and the surgeon allowed junior doctors to carry out surgeries unsupervised when he should have been operating himself.
They also claimed he was a bully who was regarded as “untouchable” since he brought money into his department through “questionable” research projects.
One doctor told the BBC: “I did raise concerns at the time but I was shut down. We were told we would never get our traineeship.
“It went all the way up to the board. They all knew about it.”
NHS Tayside deny the whistleblowers’ timeline.
They said: “NHS Tayside were not previously aware of these concerns by former trainees relating to their experiences of Professor Eljamel, who was suspended by NHS Tayside in December 2013.
“We understandably take these concerns very seriously and we would encourage anyone who has concerns about Professor Eljamel to contact the Patient Liaison Response Team.”
Campaigners
Those who suffered as a result of Eljamel’s malpractice have been at the front and centre of calls for justice.
Former Dundee DJ Pat Kelly was the first key voice to demand a public inquiry and has been demanding answers for nearly a decade.
Mr Kelly underwent back surgery at Eljamel’s hands in 2007, but has since doubted the operation was ever actually carried out.
Kinross mum Jules Rose had a tear gland removed instead of a tumour when the rogue surgeon operated on her in 2013, while he was under supervision.
Since then she has organised major protests at Holyrood and outside Ninewells Hospital in a bid to advance the case for a public inquiry.
In total, more than 100 patients have come forward claiming they are victims of botched surgeries by Eljamel.
Scottish Government chiefs
Humza Yousaf had borne the brunt of demands for a public inquiry into Eljamel, both as first minister and in his previous post as health chief.
The SNP leader was heckled by Fife gran Theresa Mallett at the party’s special conference in June over his refusal to meet the wishes of patients.
All eyes recently have been on Michael Matheson, Mr Yousaf’s successor in the health brief, as he faced continued pressure from Eljamel’s victims.
Mr Matheson initially promised an independent review, but patients warned that did not go far enough.
Deputy First Minister Shona Robison was the first SNP minister to formally reject calls for a public inquiry back in 2015, when she was health secretary.
Lesley McLay
The former nurse replaced Gerry Marr as NHS Tayside chief executive in December 2013 and earned £125,000 a year.
But she was stripped of the leadership in April 2018 – going on sick leave the day before her accountable officer status was revoked – amid furore over the use of charity funds for general spending.
Ms McLay, who walked away with a £90,000 severance package, was in charge of NHS Tayside in 2015 when then health minister Shona Robison ruled out a public inquiry.
Ms Robison had been given assurances the health board would carry out a “thorough and wide-ranging” investigation to “prevent this happening again in the future”.
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