NUH dismisses further staff in inappropriate access investigations | Latest news

• Nottingham Hospitals has now dismissed a total of 15 staff in connection with an investigation into the inappropriate access of medical records belonging to Ian Coates, Grace O'Malley-Kumar and Barnaby Webber.
• 15 final written warnings and two first written warnings have also been issued. Staff included in the investigation include doctors, nurses, registered healthcare professionals and other staff. 
• The Trust is working with staff to educate them through a ‘Your Responsibility, Your Actions, Their Privacy’ campaign, and is implementing a new system to further protect patient records.  

---

 

Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust (NUH) has made further dismissals in its investigation into the inappropriate access of medical records belonging to Ian Coates, Grace O'Malley-Kumar and Barnaby Webber.  

This now brings the total number of dismissals as part of the investigation to 15, alongside 15 final written warnings and two first written warnings. Staff included in the investigation include doctors, nurses, registered healthcare professionals and other staff. Two cases were found to have nothing to answer and no action was taken. 

The families were contacted by the Trust this week to update them on the latest outcomes. 

The Trust started thorough inquiries in 2025 to identify where access to records was illegitimate and considered inappropriate. Regulatory standards have been applied to all inquiries throughout to ensure a consistent and fair approach. 

Dr Manjeet Shehmar, Medical Director at NUH, said: “There is simply no excuse for accessing the records of a patient without a legitimate reason and I hope this sends a really clear message – we will investigate and we will take action.

“To lose a loved one in the way that the families of Ian, Grace and Barnaby have is heartbreaking enough. I am so sorry that they have had this further compounded by the actions of these staff members. 

"We will continue to investigate inappropriate access to these records and take action as and where necessary. Alongside this, we are doing all we can to educate our staff on appropriate access and how to keep the records of our patients safe. We are also introducing a new system which acts to detect possible data breaches. 

“While the actions of these staff members are disappointing, we know that this represents a small number of our wider workforce. We know staff across the Trust are listening, learning and doing what they can to ensure that only lawful and justified access takes place in our hospitals.” 

As part of the investigation, the Trust is discussing the outcomes with relevant independent regulators, such as the Nursing and Midwifery Council and General Medical Council. The Trust has also informed the Information Commissioner’s Office and Nottinghamshire Police.  

Investigations are ongoing into inappropriate access in these cases, also including inappropriate access of the files of surviving victims, including Wayne Birkett, Sharon Miller and Marcin Gawronski. 

The Trust has been working with staff to educate them through a ‘Your Responsibility, Your Actions, Their Privacy’ campaign, which offers the information colleagues need to understand roles and responsibilities in relation to data protection and of the serious consequences of data breaches.  

A new system to further protect patient records in being introduced to continually monitor access, identify suspicious behaviour, and generate alerts, audits and reports. Automated alerts will help to detect possible breaches. Testing on the system is currently underway, followed by a pilot period, with the aim of going live early next year.  

Breakdown of outcomes so far 

Hearing Outcome    
No case to answer   2 
First written warning   2 
Final written warning   15 
Dismissal   15