“She is complaining… her complaint is undermining professional reputations and is unacceptable. She must stop or else she must be made to stop.”
Derbyshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust, November 2014.
Former NHS Governor pioneers 'Dear Coroner'
Upholding Nolan Principles, unveiling concealed truths in a deeply entrenched, toxic culture
Imperative: overhaul complaints, honour duty of candour, shift resources from reputation defence to life preservation.
Illuminate shadows, safeguard lives, champion the public interest.
Trigger Warning for site content
Katherine | Standing up to do the right thing – Nolan Principles
Dear Coroner, I wanted you to know that if I had died, it was intentional. Because the Trust would have encouraged you to believe it was an ‘accident’ or ‘misadventure’ to try and protect their organisational reputation. And this would
Premature Death | Hospital forged documents rather than admit negligence
St George’s complaints dept committed a criminal offence by producing forged documents rather than admit negligence. I keep being falsely accused of non attendance of appointments of which I’m not notified. Hospital insists letters sent and refuses to investigate further.
Gracie | Staff misconduct when I was in the most vulnerable state (on eyesight observations)
Following a suicide attempt I was sectioned ‘for my own safety’ in a NHS psychiatric hospital. During my 4 month admission there were a number of incidents that have left me with PTSD from my time on the ward. I
E | Neglect
I was taken into resus after severely self harming. I am autistic and non-verbal. I communicate through my phone or with written words or PECS. I need other people to write things down too so I can understand. This is
Pseudonym | Soul destroying – an erroneous and cruel discharge from adult mental health services.
An unpublished Ombudsman (PHSO) report (2023) stems from a complaint that began in 2019. Also, my final response to NHS Trust’s apology, four and a half years later, in 2024. This fiendish, soul-destroying process would destroy even the most healthy
Mama D | Negligent Neonatal Death
Our 1 day old full term son died at one day old due to a catalogue of failures. The Trust has since Admitted substandard care in community midwifery, and failure to sufficiently investigate, diagnose, and treat our son and that
Woman of God | The chase to put Mum on End of Life
What happened to my Mother is in two parts… The first hospital admission I was away on a one week course and my Mother was complaining of feeling very unwell. My sister took her to hospital. The hospital did some
MariaGrazia | Mental Health information
Our manager arranged for patients mental health information to be shared with staff (we’re not clinical). Patients did not consent. I complained – my life has been miserable since – I’ve seen minutes where they talk about letting me go.
Traumatised Zebra | Assault cover up
I was a severely unwell patient in an NHS hospital and was physically assaulted by a doctor. Disclosed to nursing staff immediately afterwards and they said “I know him, he wouldn’t do something like that”. Left the hospital early before
Daughter | Elderly mum deliberately marked as EOL
93 year old mum, few health problems (Type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure, mobility issues, early stages of dementia). Lived on her own with some help from my brother, but pretty much independent. Had a fall, developed hypothermia. Taken to
SAGE | Given an overdose by NHS but covered up and let die in agony, rather than admit and apply antidote
Late 2021 a very recently recruited and deficiently trained international nurse was eager to get my reluctant mother to bed and she presented a Sara Stedy lifting aid that she didn’t know how to use, that was too large a
MCTG | Cover up and perjury
My son died in 2017, at his inquest later that year the trust witnesses lied to the Coroner, they withheld crucial records, pages 3-5 and pages 77-82 of the care pathway. Pages 3-5 included the index for the pathway but
Beverley | Mental health services let me down in catastrophic ways.
In 2011 /2012 I had become pregnant at 24 after coming back from volunteering abroad. I had suffered a very severe depressive episode before this. My behaviour started to change overnight. I was cold angry full of rage which was
Dorothy | My mother was let down by the NHS and they covered it up.
A family member phoned for an ambulance. An Ambulance took 4 hours to get to my mother’s house. She had catastrophic brain damage because she had had a stroke. You have to move quickly when it comes to having a
Lucie | Bullied to suicide. Ten attempts to take career off me.
I was a hardworking, competent, nhs professional. Well liked by colleagues and managers alike. I began to get bullied by a clinical specialist within my discipline. I was the latest ‘target’ of many colleagues who had found alternative employment due
A | Maternity Failures, duty of candour, failure to learn from mistakes to prevent deaths
Dear Coroner, A year ago my beautiful daughter died a totally preventable death in full term labour. Growth restriction, where the placenta stops working so well is very common, affecting 8% of pregnancies in the UK. It is a massive
Jane Smith | My Mother abused by statutory services for many years, all due to them preventing her qualifying for NHS CHC funding in 2012.
My Mother suffered severe Strokes in 2012 which left her disabled, with health complications and Dementia. My Mother should have qualified for vital NHS Continuing Health Care all this time, but all professionals involved have insisted she has social care
Sarah | Traumatic experience in NHS psychiatric hospital, no closure, no moving forward
I was raped in the summer of 2018, by an acquaintance, at a friend’s home. My life was (prior to this) already falling apart, and I saw less and less reason to stay living. I was living in supported accommodation
Mum | My child had a prolific mental health illness
My child became ill hearing voices, seeing a figure and self harming. Asked for help, was referred to mental health services. Was informed it was tiredness in an appointment lasting no longer than 20 minutes. Over a period of no