“Abrasive culture” at Scotland’s largest health board left doctors unable to raise concerns

A group of whistleblowing doctors who raised the alarm about patient safety in the emergency department at Scotland’s largest hospital have had their concerns upheld.

An investigation by Healthcare Improvement Scotland (HIS) into conditions at Glasgow’s Queen Elizabeth University Hospital concluded that NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde seemed “to have allowed an abrasive culture to develop, with evidence of poor and disrespectful behaviours, which makes it very difficult for staff at all levels of the organisation to feel safe to challenge and appropriately address this culture.”1

Staff complained of insufficient capacity to meet demands for emergency care, leading to long delays …