Senior doctor warned evil Lucy Letby’s NHS ward where she killed babies was ‘overstretched and unsafe’

A SENIOR doctor warned hospital chiefs that the ward where Lucy Letby murdered seven babies was “chaotic, overstretched and unsafe”.

Paediatrician Dr Alison Timmis emailed the boss of the Countess of Chester in late 2015 to say staff were overwhelmed.

She told Tony Chambers: “I have seen several colleagues in tears as they know that the care they are providing falls below their standards.

“This is now our normal working pattern and it is not safe.”

Letby, 33, is serving a whole life sentence for killing seven babies from June 2015 to June 2016.

Lawyer Richard Scorer, representing two families whose babies were targeted, said: “This suggests there were serious problems of which Letby was able to take advantage.”

The government announced an inquiry into Letby will be held, but families of her victims want it to be statutory so hospital managers can be forced to attend, rather than simply asked.

Cheshire Police has widened its investigation to examine whether she harmed any other children earlier in her career, with the Home Office giving them an additional £2.8m funds in support.

Meanwhile cops in Birmingham are reviewing cases of patients at Birmingham Children’s Hospital following the sudden unexpected deaths of three children.

A nurse aged 28 has been arrested on suspicion of administering a poison with intent to endanger life.

Dr Fiona Reynolds, chief medical officer at Birmingham Women's and Children's NHS Foundation Trust, said: "In May 2022, a child on the paediatric intensive care unit at Birmingham Children's Hospital deteriorated suddenly and unexpectedly. Due to the circumstances of the deterioration, the trust acted straight away.

"A member of staff was suspended from work and subsequently arrested at home. Sadly, the child later died and our thoughts remain with the family."