Slater and Gordon urge possible patients to come forward with concerns about spinal surgeon

In a series of investigations, John Bradley Williamson was found to have caused harm to patients through an array of failings, including conducting “substandard surgery due to lack of care and attention”.

Mr Williamson practiced at the Salford Royal Hospital, Manchester Children's Hospital and Spire Manchester Hospital in a career that spanned from 1991 until he was sacked by the former Salford Royal NHS Foundation Trust in January 2015.

In a review of more than 130 patients who were operated on between 2009 and 2014, it was found that seven suffered “severe harm” and 13 more suffered “moderate harm”. Seventy-two were identified for clinical recall.

The latest review into Mr Williamson’s practice, published by the Northern Care Alliance NHS Foundation Trust – which now operates Salford Royal - found 15 areas in which the once-esteemed consultant surgeon let down patients.

These included poor pre-operative and post-operative planning, decision making against advice from the wider team, poor record keeping and communication and delays to treatment. It was also found his surgery caused long-term pain and mobility issues, and that Mr Williamson displayed “unacceptable and unprofessional behaviour”.

The report stated that “patients specifically sought out” Mr Williamson to carry out their operations due to his apparent standing within the profession.

Manchester Children’s Hospital’s review of 56 patients revealed “severe harm” had been caused in a number of cases. Spire Healthcare has also extended its recall of patients operated on by Mr Williamson back to 1998, which is beyond the scope of the investigation.

However, with patients coming forward whose cases have not formed part of the formal investigations into Mr Williamson’s work, concerns have been raised as to the potential scale of how many people are affected.

We are investigating concerns around treatment delivered by Mr Williamson.

“While 130 cases were looked at within a six year period, there may well be patients who were affected within that time frame who were not included in this investigation when they potentially should have been,” says Jodie Cook, a senior associate and clinical negligence specialist at the firm.

“Equally, Mr Williamson has practiced since 1991 – there are many more years in his career in which cases may need to be looked at. Given what the investigations have found, and the damning findings that have been delivered, there are definite grounds for concern.

“We would say that to establish the true scale, patients themselves who feel they have suffered poor treatment at the hands of Mr Williamson should come forward. Clearly Mr Williamson once had a reputation as being a leader in his field, and we know from our own investigations that patients often do not believe such a seemingly eminent surgeon could have caused such harm, but we would urge anyone with any concerns to raise them. Only by doing so can we establish the full picture around this investigation.”

If you think you have been affected, we urge you to come forward and contact Jodie Cook at jodie.cook.@slatergordon.uk or call 0330 995 6240