http://bmj.com/cgi/content/full/323/7308/300/a
BMJ 2001;323:300 ( 11 August )
Helen Barratt
The doctor who referred a colleague providing single vaccines for measles,
mumps, and rubella to the General Medical Council has defended his
actions as the only available way of raising issues of patients'
safety in the private sector.
Professor Brian McCloskey, director of public health for Worcestershire
Health Authority, said that he had been caught in the middle of two conflicting
clinical views and has asked the General Medical Council to take a
further look into the issue and concerns it raised regarding
patients' safety. "The lesson of Bristol is that the NHS is not
good at responding to patient safety issues," he said.
Commenting on his experience at the centre of media coverage in the past
week, he added: "The message to the profession is that this is
what happens when you whistleblow, and it is not very
encouraging." He also defended his decision to refer the matter
to the General Medical Council, saying no other body investigates private
practitioners.
Peter Mansfield, the doctor at the centre of the allegations, has been
giving the vaccinations at a private clinic in Worcestershire since
May this year. The clinic, run by the company Desumo, takes place
twice a month. The monovalent vaccines are available in Britain to
children who have previously had a reaction to the standard MMR
vaccine or who have already started the vaccine course, normally
with a single rubella vaccine. Such use is licensed, and the
Worcestershire clinic gives the remaining vaccines six weeks apart.
Mansfield, who has been an independent practitioner for nearly
35 years, said as far as he knows the GMC is currently being briefed.
He has not been given a definite date for any hearing.
"I do not understand the basis of their allegations and await further
clarification," he said. "I am sure there has been a misunderstanding
somewhere."
Mansfield is concerned about the issues the case raises regarding informed
consent and, ultimately, clinical freedom. But he can see no reason
to stop providing the vaccines.
Dr Peter Copp, a private GP in Edinburgh who has provided single vaccines
for more than 2000 children in the past year, echoed Dr
Mansfield's concerns. He said that this was no longer just a public
health issue but, more importantly, it raised the question of
clinical freedom.
© BMJ 2001
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