Midland Independent Newspapers plc

Birmingham Post
April 3, 2000, Monday
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(EA+&INE" PAIENS ,#E-E &E. ! +IE ! .-EE /P BE+S,
B0&INE" 1onathan #al2er
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A doctor is acc3sing the medical pro4ession o4 ,playing 'od, and deli5erately
hastening the death o4 elderly patients to 4ree 3p 5eds%
+r -ita Pal, aged 26, 4rom S3tton Cold4ield, said she decided to 5low the whistle on
what she claimed were common practices in the medical pro4ession a4ter 5ecoming
disill3sioned 5y the callo3sness o4 doctors%
B3t the Midland hospitals where she said the practices went on ha7e denied the
claims%
+r Pal, who is now training to 5e a 5arrister, has sent a dossier to the 'eneral
Medical Co3ncil o3tlining her allegations%
She 8oined North Sta44ordshire (ospital in A3g3st 9::6 and claimed that in her 4irst
month a senior doctor ordered medication to 5e withdrawn 4rom an 6:;year ;old stro2e
7ictim who was critically ill%
She said" ,he doctor said the hospital needed the 5ed%,
She said an elderly woman with dia5etes was neglected a4ter 5eing admitted in
No7em5er 9::6% he patient re<3ired constant monitoring o4 her 5lood;s3gar le7el 53t
this was allegedly not pro7ided%
+r Pal said her greatest concern was o7er the 3se o4 diamorphine, a pain ;2illing
dr3g which also inhi5its the respiratory system and can ca3se patients to stop 5reathing%
!n one occasion a 4emale patient died a4ter 5eing gi7en what +r Pal claimed was an
3nnecessarily large dose%
In 1an3ary 9::: she le4t North Sta44ordshire (ospital a4ter she nearly 2illed a
patient s344ering 4rom a gall;5ladder in4ection%
+r Pal said she had 5een le4t witho3t s3per7ision on the ward and had tried
desperately to 4ind a senior doctor to tell her what treatment was re<3ired% E7ent3ally she
said she was 4orced to act alone and ga7e the woman a drip containing too m3ch 4l3id,
which ca3sed heart 4ail3re% he woman reco7ered 53t died days later%
She said she complained a5o3t the lac2 o4 s3pport she had recei7ed 53t was
,7ictimised, as a res3lt and 8oined Selly !a2 (ospital in Birmingham, part o4 /ni7ersity
(ospital Birmingham N(S r3st%
here she said she was told 5y a doctor to administer diamorphine to a woman with
pne3monia 53t in8ected it instead into the mattress 5eca3se she 5elie7ed it wo3ld 5e 4atal%
he ne=t day she claimed the doctor was s3rprised the patient was still ali7e and
as2ed i4 the dr3g had 5een gi7en% he patient e7ent3ally reco7ered%
+r Pal said" ,Cons3ltants ma2e a 83dgment a5o3t whether a person,s <3ality o4 li4e is
good or 5ad and whether it wo3ld 5e more h3mane to gi7e them the dr3g% his is a 7ery
s358ecti7e 83dgment and a personal 7iew, and many doctors are 7ery ageist%,
She stopped 5eing a 43ll;time doctor at the 5eginning o4 A3g3st 53t contin3ed in the
pro4ession as a loc3m%
She said that in +ecem5er she was wor2ing o7ernight at #orcester -oyal In4irmary
when a patient came in with internal 5leeding% She said he had pre7io3sly 5een
discharged premat3rely%
She said she tried 4or two ho3rs to get help and the patient,s conditioned worsened%
(e was e7ent3ally trans4erred to another hospital, where he died%
A spo2esman 4or North Sta44ordshire (ospital said" ,+r Pal has already raised a
range o4 criticisms with 3s which were in7estigated, incl3ding case notes 5eing re7iewed,
53t none was s35stantiated%,
A spo2esman 4or Selly !a2 (ospital said" ,I4 +r Pal has any allegations she can pass
them on to 3s and we will in7estigate%,
A spo2esman 4or #orcester -oyal In4irmary said" ,he patient +r Pal re4ers to had
5een discharged appropriately%
,#hen he came in a second time there was no intensi7e;care 5ed a7aila5le and he
was trans4erred to another hospital% B3t this gentleman was gi7en a high <3ality o4 care
and he died 4rom the se7erity o4 his condition%,
A spo2eswoman 4or the British Medical Association said" ,+iamorphine sho3ld 5e
3sed to relie7e pain and distress and it wo3ld 5e completely wrong i4 it was 3sed to
hasten the death o4 a patient%,

'-AP(IC" Acc3sations" +r -ita Pal in8ected diamorphine into a mattress 5eca3se she
4eared the dose wo3ld 2ill the patient 4or whom it was intended%
&!A+;+AE" April 3, 2000