A Dundee woman subjected to seven operations by disgraced neurosurgeon Sam Eljamel fears she could die before getting answers from a promised public inquiry.
Leann Sutherland was left in so much pain after she went under Eljamel’s knife that she begged her mum to suffocate her.
Now aged 34, she has spent over a decade fighting for recognition that something had gone seriously wrong despite being told by successive doctors that Eljamel had “saved her life” rather than destroyed it.
But in a wake-up call to government, Leann says she was told by Eljamel she could expect to live only until her late 40s.
In an interview with The Courier, she described feeling “liberated” as First Minister Humza Yousaf announced the government’s dramatic U-turn in ordering a public inquiry on September 7.
‘Reckless’
She said: “I’ve been told by my new doctors that Eljamel saved my life. I’ve been made out to be insane.
“After all these years it is finally recognition I wasn’t just making this up. Something went wrong and it wasn’t my fault.
“It’s them saying that this neurosurgeon was reckless, confirming all these things we’ve been saying.”
Public inquiry U-turn is bitter sweet
She was first referred to the rogue doctor aged 21 after suffering with crippling migraines.
Despite a letter from her GP saying acupuncture could help, Eljamel – who Leann says had a “planet-sized ego” – recommended emergency surgery to insert a tube that would drain fluid from her spine.
LISTEN: Eljamel inquiry special edition of the Stooshie podcast
But she is now convinced she was used as a guinea pig by the surgeon.
She claims he made a catalogue of critical errors during her surgery that left fluid pouring from the back of her neck.
Public inquiries are notoriously slow-moving, leaving Leann angry about the time it took to announce an independent probe.
An initial plea for an inquiry was rejected in 2015 by the Scottish Government, including then-health secretary Shona Robison, who is now deputy first minister.
Leann says: “I could die before it’s finished, they say a public inquiry could take 10 years. What if I am not alive to see the outcome?
“It’s just a maybe, I can’t believe everything he said, but I’m 34 now and 47 is just 12 years away.
“I don’t know what could happen, my shunt could burst at any moment. Will I see how this was allowed to happen?”
Despite this, Leann remains hopeful that the inquiry will finally provide answers and make NHS Tayside realise it has a duty of care for those patients affected.
“The Scottish Government didn’t half wring this out, but I hope it finally gives us the answers we need,” she told us.
“As soon as Eljamel touched me it changed the course of my life and it will do forever. I can’t remove the scar tissue he left from my brain. I have to live with that, I’ll never get over it.
“You can’t just move on, it’s a process, but when this is all wrapped up I hope [NHS Tayside] will address that we need therapy.
“That would be a weight of my shoulders, to know I don’t need to make myself ill to get money to pay for therapy.”
Her call for therapy was supported by North East MSP Michael Marra, who stressed the importance of clinical reviews for each patients.
He said: “Each individual case needs to be clinically reviewed now so that patients can have a full understanding of their medical condition.
“Those individual clinical reviews will allow people to take the necessary next steps to safeguard their health. NHS Tayside should do everything in its power to support the next steps that are required.
“It would seem obvious that some of Eljamel’s victims will need counselling and mental health support. NHS Tayside should be looking now to see how they can be supported.”
NHS apology
An NHS Tayside spokeswoman said any patients requiring support should contact its patient liaison team by emailing tay.patientliaisonresponse@nhs.scot.
The spokeswoman added: “NHS Tayside apologises to former patients of the surgeon and remains committed to do whatever is required to support all independent processes which are being set up by Scottish Government to respond to patients’ ongoing concerns.”
Scottish Conservative MSP Liz Smith said the government must now outline a timetable for the inquiry, launched after eight years of campaigning journalism by The Courier.
She told us: “Leann’s tale is absolutely harrowing and my thoughts are with her as she suffers as a result of Eljamel’s actions when she was so young.
“The delays from the SNP government in announcing a public inquiry has only prolonged the agony for victims like Leann.
“It is devastating to read that she has a real fear that she could potentially die before any inquiry concludes.”
Conversation