Surgeon at threatened Leeds heart unit ‘told to stop operating’

They said the surgeon, who has not been named, had agreed not to carry out procedures because of concerns over his adult heart surgery work.

Managers “strongly refuted” suggestions action had been taken because of care or outcomes for children.

A High Court judge is due to make a ruling affecting the future of Leeds’s children’s heart surgery unit within days. It faces closure after NHS bosses decided to move the service to Newcastle as part of a national shake-up.

Earlier this month, Leeds campaign group Save Our Surgery won a legal challenge over the way the decision to close the LGI unit was reached. On Wednesday the judge will consider what action should be taken.

A Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust spokesman said: “We have asked one of our surgeons to stop operating because of concerns raised within the team relating not to his work in children’s surgery but to his adult cardiac work – whilst we investigate the facts in relation to those concerns.

“These concerns are not about adverse mortality or morbidity figures. We have taken this action as a precaution to ensure that we can continue to be confident (patient) services remain of the highest standard.”

He said separate claims of excess deaths among Leeds child heart surgery patients several years ago, were confirmed to be “completely unfounded” by watchdog the Care Quality Commission (CQC).

The spokesman added that the action over the surgeon was unrelated to these claims.

He said an internal assessment of the surgeon’s surgical practice was being carried out.

Sharon Cheng, from Save Our Surgery, said: “The Safe and Sustainable review itself found the Leeds centre to be as safe as anywhere else in the country.”