Medical Mobbing Part Trois. The Wicked Ways of Rod Griffiths

Telling the Truth Becomes an Impossibility

And that was the end of my Swine Flu. Now back to the whistleblowing business. I am terribly sorry that the GMC and Department of Health are probably rather disappointed that their grave digging has not come to any legitimate result. Yes, I have a few remnants of Swine Flu but nothing that will throw me into one of those graves. Besides, after remaining in a medical box full of disgusting people, I think being in a wooden box would cramp my style. I would prefer to simply be cremated with my ashes thrown to the seas at Lizards Point.

In the meantime, as I am not facing a furnace or an NHS hospital, I think it is probably best that we continued the tales of medical mobbing. Previously on Ward 87, I wrote about Prof Rod Griffiths CBE. The CBE is important because it means that no matter how many patients you affect, you can retire in Worcestershire with a rather large fat pension.

I woke up this morning to an email from Professor Rod Griffiths. I had asked him to correct his Wicked Ways. Well, all wolves need an opportunity to correct themselves. After all, reformed characters often do this kind of thing. Griffiths wrote a very predictable email and refused to correct his position. He made all kinds of excuses for the fact he wished to sit on his toad stool and simply croak. I had actually secretly hoped he would do this because life would be rather boring without detailing the Wicked Ways of Rod Griffiths online and through a book. Some things are just too entertaining as narrative to be locked in some stuffy old cabinet. And when we are all dead and buried, no one can say I was unfair. I always have this theory that reading is a high expectation. It is clear that Griffiths is unable to read evidence. He never has been able to read properly. The same can be applied to numerous judges, lawyers, senior doctors, GMC workers etc etc. The more you walk up the ladder of authority, the more you understand that reading is a rare and specialist talent. With the General Medical Council, you raise one issue, the question answered is another one.

This was one of my favorite emails written to the legal representatives paid for by the tax payer. Yes, old Rodders was represented by his entourage of Department of Health ethnically correct lawyers. One of our favorites is Zahida Ramzan Asgar. Asgar is a fascinating creature. Like most lawyers, Zahida has problems with the truth. Dealing with the complaint at the GMC was a bit like making a Carry On Movie or indeed a Pantomine. Ramzan Asgar cannot have been employed by the Department of Health for her talents in honesty. The problem with lawyers and doctors like Professor Griffiths is that they all assume that only they are clever and that the rest of us aren't.

The email below centred upon my allegation that there was no drip set to save a patient. Whats the fuss, the Telegraph may [ and did] ask. For those in the medical know how, we know that if fluid cannot be administered in a dehydrated hypovolaemic patient, then they tend to die. Drip sets are available in every first world country and even in third world countries.

Anyhow, in this particular case, Asgar as a lawyer thought she was cleverest one in the world. You could just imagine her standing in front of her large oval mirror preening herself and telling herself what a wonderful lawyer she is.

Griffiths felt that as senior doctor extraordinarily, no one would question his absurd statement. Again, it was designed to imply that I didn't know what I was talking about. The fact though remains that I have always known what I am talking about - it is simply that the rest of the authorities haven't a f**** clue.

This was my email to her - following this email, the GMC began to run around like headless chickens. Why do I talk about this now - well, its hellishly funny and readers ought to assess the question - if these people in high places don't have a clue about drop sets, what do they have a clue about?

Message date : Apr 25 2005, 10:46 PM
From : "Rita Pal"
To : "Zahida Ramzan-Asghar"
Copy to :
Subject : Lesson one in Medicine for Professor Griffiths

Dear Zahida,

You say your client has a CBE, a A++ distinction award etc etc.

In 18.5 of your document ( page 26), you state

" An alternative available to the Complainant was to call a crash team herself and not leave the patient. The crash team would have had a drip set and would have provided more experience".

I am sure the eminent Professor with his CBE and his A+ distinction award would be aware that the most experienced doctor in the world could not do anything without a infusion set. For mere solicitors like yourself - you need to comprehend that without a drip set, fluid cannot be administered even by the crash team or a consultant. Anyhow, I enclose the Resuscitation Council's Ward/ Hospital equipment list.

The Resuscitation Council states the following "Provision should be made in all clinical areas to have immediate access to resuscitation drugs and equipment to facilitate rapid resuscitation of the patient in cardiopulmonary arrest". This is the minimum requirement for equipment on any ward.

Anyhow, as you are a solicitor and rather observant, you may well notice in the circulation equipment section of this document- it states " Intravenous infusion sets" . This is of course a drip set.

You admitted that because there was no drip set on the ward, I should have called the crash team for help despite the fact the patient had not arrested. Anyhow, firstly the crash team is ONLY called in a situation of actual rather than predicted respiratory or cardiac arrest ( I can show you the protocols for this if you wish). By your own admission there was no drip set, therefore the ward has not fulfilled the minimum standards expected by the resuscitation council thereby placing patients at risk.

By the way, for avoidance of doubt, the enclosed equipment is expected to be on every ward by every crash team. Perhaps you should join me in a crash call so that we can all observe whether a drip set is routinely carried. Would you like me to bleep the registrar oncall at a hospital today and on the crash team - I could ask him whether he has a drip set in his pocket that he carries around while on MAU :)

You should also remember that I was on the City General Hospital Crash Team. I note in May 1999, the defibrillator in City General Hospital stopped working mid arrest. The expression, we had one but the knob fell off springs to mind.

For our Professor, a man with A ++ and a CBE - it is rather laughable that he has absolutely no idea of the minimal requirements required on a clinical ward and neither apparently has the General Medical Council.

Lesson two will be later on this week :). Hope you are taking notes Prof Griffiths.

Kind Regards

Dr Rita Pal

cc This is blind copied to all my medical friends including those on a doctors website near here so they can have a good laugh. For all the non medics on this list - this concerns Professor Griffiths ( Ex Director of Public Health)'s efforts to bamboozle the GMC into thinking that if there is no drip set on the ward, one should call the crash team even if the patient has not yet arrested to obtain a drip set. Apparently, the SHO, Registrar or anaesthetist will bring their own dripset. So campers - everytime the NHS Trusts fail to afford to put drip sets on the ward, and you need one to infuse fluids - call the crash team and tell them Professor Rod Griffiths set ya :) and the GMC agrees with it. So for the number of times we need a drip set in a medical emergency such as dehydration, septic shock, pre - op, hypoglycaemia etc the GMC and Prof Griffiths advises us to - call the crash team. When the crash team arrive you say " He is not dead, he has not arrested, he is breathing, he has a pulse but I would not mind borrowing your drip set" ( cause Prof Griffiths said you would not mind).