News releases
July 2001
Contents
- Tight security maintained as Department of Health given access to Inquiry Report
- Information note for media representitives regarding the publication of the Inquiry report
Previous Releases:
- April 2001
- Feb 2001
- Sept 2000
- June 2000
- May 2000
- April 2000
- March 2000
- February 2000
- January 2000
- News Releases - 1999
- News Releases - 1998
Inquiry Report to be published next week
The Final Report of the Bristol Royal Infirmary Inquiry will be made public next week.
Subject to the parliamentary timetable, it is anticipated that the Inquiry’s Report will be published on Wednesday 18 July.
This week the final installment of the Report was made available to the Secretary of State for Health under the same agreement of strict confidentiality as applied to the first installment, which he was given access to a week earlier.
Copies of the Report have been restricted to the Secretary of State himself and a very small group of named senior people within the Department of Health.
Details regarding the presentation of the Report will be made available in due course.
For further information please contact Becky Jarvis, Head of Communications, Bristol Royal Infirmary Inquiry, Tel 020 734 00970 or Mobile: (0777 575 4204) or Bleep 0208 345 6789 ask for INQ 102.
12 July 2001 BRI 01-13
Notes to Editors
Terms of Reference
The Bristol Royal Infirmary Inquiry is an independent Public Inquiry. The former Secretary of State for Health, Frank Dobson, appointed Professor Ian Kennedy, Professor of Health Law, Ethics and Policy at the University College, London, to conduct an Inquiry under Section 84 of the National Health Service Act 1977.
The Inquiry’s Terms of Reference are:
"To inquire into the management of the care of children receiving complex cardiac surgical services at the Bristol Royal Infirmary between 1984 and 1995 and relevant related issues; to make findings as to the adequacy of the services provided; to establish what action was taken both within and outside the hospital to deal with concerns raised about the surgery and to identify any failure to take appropriate action promptly; to reach conclusions from these events and to make recommendations which could help to secure high quality care across the NHS."
The Secretary of State said that the Inquiry would cover all aspects of what went wrong at Bristol - identifying any professional, management and organisational failures and making recommendations to safeguard patients and their families in future.
The Report
The structure of the report will be as follows:
The Report itself will have two sections: The Bristol Story, and The Future. It will be published in printed format and on CD.
The Report will be accompanied by 4 annexes, both on CD:
- Annex A will be a factual account of the evidence relating to paediatric cardiac services in Bristol presented to the Inquiry during its first Phase;
- Annex B will include expert reports on statistics; the clinical case note review and other expert commentaries;
- Annex C is the Inquiry’s Interim Report: Removal and retention of human material, published May 2000; and
- Annex D is a copy of the verbatim transcript of the Phase One oral hearings.
The Report and its annexes will also be published on the Inquiry’s website www.bristol-inquiry.org.uk
Following publication, printed copies of the Report can be obtained from The Stationery Office.
m.f.
Tight security maintained as Department of Health given access to Inquiry Report
The Final Report of the Bristol Royal Infirmary Public Inquiry will be
published before the end of July.
As part of the preparation for the publication of the Report, the Inquiry
is able to announce today that the Secretary of State for Health has now
been allowed early privileged access to a first installment of it. The
second will follow shortly.
This is the first time any part of the Report has been made available
outside the Inquiry’s central team and the tight security surrounding
the content of the Report continues.
In the interest of fairness and to maintain the integrity and independence
of the Inquiry, the Inquiry has agreed with the Department of Health that
its early privileged access to the Report should be under circumstances
of strict confidentiality, so as to ensure that nothing appears prematurely.
Access to the Report has been restricted to the Secretary of State and
a very small group of named senior people within the Department of Health.
Details regarding the publication of the Report will be made available
in due course.
ENDS
For further information please
contact Becky Jarvis, Head of Communications, Bristol Royal Infirmary
Inquiry, Tel (0117) 938 8716 or Mobile: (0777 575 4204) or Bleep 0208
345 6789 ask for INQ 102.
02 July 2001 BRI 01-12
m.f.
Notes to Editors
Terms of Reference
The Bristol Royal Infirmary Inquiry is an independent Public Inquiry. The former Secretary of State for Health, Frank Dobson, appointed Professor Ian Kennedy, Professor of Health Law, Ethics and Policy at the University College, London, to conduct an Inquiry under Section 84 of the National Health Service Act 1977.
The Inquiry’s Terms of Reference are:
"To inquire into the management of the care of children receiving
complex cardiac surgical services at the Bristol Royal Infirmary between
1984 and 1995 and relevant related issues; to make findings as to the
adequacy of the services provided; to establish what action was taken
both within and outside the hospital to deal with concerns raised about
the surgery and to identify any failure to take appropriate action promptly;
to reach conclusions from these events and to make recommendations which
could help to secure high quality care across the NHS."
The Secretary of State said that the Inquiry would cover all aspects of what went wrong at Bristol - identifying any professional, management and organisational failures and making recommendations to safeguard patients and their families in future.
The Report
The structure of the report will be as follows:
The Report itself will have two sections: The Bristol Story, and The
Future. It will be published in printed format and on CD.
The Report will be accompanied by 4 annexes, both on CD:
- Annex A will be a factual account of the evidence relating to paediatric
cardiac services in Bristol presented to the Inquiry during its first
Phase;
- Annex B will include expert reports on statistics; the clinical case
note review and other expert commentaries;
- Annex C is the Inquiry’s Interim Report: Removal and retention of human
material, published May 2000; and
- Annex D is a copy of the verbatim transcript of the Phase One oral
hearings.
The Report and its annexes will also be published on the Inquiry’s website www.bristol-inquiry.org.uk
Presentation of the Bristol Royal Infirmary Inquiry Report and Press Conference
Information for media representatives
Subject to the Parliamentary timetable the Inquiry’s Report will be launched on Wednesday 18 July 2001 at the QEII Conference Centre in London.
Following the publication of the Report, the Chairman of the Inquiry intends to hold a press conference for media representatives, also at the QEII Conference Centre.
London venue for launch of the Inquiry Report
The Bristol Hospitals have been in the spotlight for too long and the United Bristol Healthcare NHS Trust today is very different from the organisation of the 1980s and 90s.
The Inquiry Panel felt it was important that the confidence of parents and patients currently receiving, or embarking on treatment in Bristol, is not undermined by focussing attention directly back onto the Bristol Royal Infirmary(BRI) in relation to events which happened in its past.
Launching the Report in London constitutes an explicit recognition of the courage and tenacity of the parents. They succeeded in bringing their concerns from Ward 5 at the BRI directly to the centre of government.
Access to the Inquiry Report
The following information will be of assistance to any media representative requiring access to the Inquiry’s Report, and for those who may wish to attend the Inquiry’s press conference later this week.
Timetable
Wednesday 18 July 2001 – QEII Conference Centre
(Please note that the following information is subject to changes in the Parliamentary timetable)
13.45 Media registration.
14.00 Embargoed copies of the Inquiry’s Report will be made available to the media *
15.30 The Secretary of State for Health will present the Bristol Royal Infirmary Inquiry Report to Parliament and make the Government’s initial response to it.
16.00 The Chairman of the Inquiry, Professor Ian Kennedy, will present the Inquiry Panel’s conclusions and recommendations.
16.30 The Inquiry press conference will begin. Professor Kennedy will answer questions from members of the media.
Following the press conference, Professor Kennedy will be available for one-to-one interviews.
Bids for interviews must be submitted to the Inquiry Press Office (by fax 0207 340 2237 - see sheet attached) or by telephone (0207 340 2217 or 0207 340 2225) by 18.00 on Tuesday 17 July. The Chairman will endeavour to meet as many requests for interviews as possible. However, please note, it will not be possible to guarantee a one-to-one interview even if a bid has been submitted.
Embargoed access to the Report
Members of the media, who wish to receive embargoed access to the Inquiry’s Report should report to the Reception at the QEII Conference Centre from 13.45 on the day of publication (18/07/01). No other venues will be available.
Please note that embargoed access to the Report will only be made available if the following criteria are met:
- You must have applied either in writing (by fax 0207 340 2237 - see sheet attached) or by telephone (0207 340 2217 or 0207 340 2225 between 8.30 and 18.00) to attend the embargoed media reading by 17.00 on the day prior to publication (17/07/01)
- You must give your name and that of the organisation(s) which you represent
- Identification must be presented to the media reception staff
- All mobile phones, pagers, lap tops, modems or any other forms of external communication, must be surrendered to the Inquiry’s security team prior to entry to the media ‘lock in’ facility. (These items will be kept securely and returned to you as soon as the embargo has been lifted.
- Once you have entered the media ‘lock in’ facility you will not be permitted to leave the facility until the embargo has been lifted (If you need to leave the media ‘lock in’ facility for a comfort break you will be accompanied by a member of the Inquiry’s security team)
The media ‘lock in’ facility
Tea, coffee and biscuits will be available. Lunch will not be provided.
Press packs will include a printed copy of the Report (approx. 500 pages), a printed copy of the Summary (approx. 20 pages) and Recommendations (approx. 20 pages) and CDs containing the Report, Summary and Annexes A-D (approx. 12,000 pages). There will also be media briefing information pack, which will include facts and figures about the Inquiry, frequently asked questions and key dates etc.
Inquiry press officers will be on hand to help you with any queries you may have regarding the structure of the Report and Annexes. They will not comment on the content of the Report. Inquiry. Security staff will be available at all times.
Personal computers (PC) will be available to those who wish to use the electronic elements of the Report and Annexes. These PCs will not have e-mail or internet access, however. Copies of the Inquiry website will have been pre-loaded for reference purposes.
Screens will be in place to allow you to view both the Secretary of State’s statement to Parliament and the presentation by the Chairman of the Inquiry if you prefer.
For those media representatives who do not wish to attend the media ‘lock in’ facility or the Inquiry’s press conference; the following options are available:
Inquiry website
The full Report, Summary and Annexes of the Bristol Royal Infirmary Inquiry will be published on the Inquiry’s website at www.bristol-inquiry.org.uk as soon as the Parliamentary embargo has been lifted.
Freephone
Dial 0500 101630 and give the password ‘Bristol Inquiry’ to hear both the Secretary of State’s statement to Parliament and the Inquiry’s presentation of the Report. There will be no charge for this facility.
The Stationery Office
Printed and electronic versions of the Inquiry’s Report, Summary and Annexes can be obtained by contacting The Stationery Office.
ENDS
For further information please contact the Inquiry’s press office on: 0207 340 2217 or 0207 340 2225. Return Fax Sheet to follow.
Bristol Royal Infirmary Inquiry, Media Fax Sheet
FAX to 0207 340 2237 between 8.30 and 18.00 on Tuesday 17 July
Request to attend embargoed media ‘lock in’ facility:
Name:
………………………………………………………………………………………
Organisation:………………………………………………………………………………..
Contact telephone number:…………………………………………………………………
Request for one-to-one interview with Professor Ian Kennedy following
the Inquiry press
conference:
Name:
………………………………………………………………………………………
Organisation:………………………………………………………………………………..
Contact telephone number:…………………………………………………………………
Details of bid:……………………………………………………………………………….
………………………………………………………………………………………………
………………………………………………………………………………………………
………………………………………………………………………………………………
………………………………………………………………………………………………