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209 Patients Harmed by Cambridge NHS Surgeon, Report Finds

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A review at Addenbrooke's Hospital found 209 patients harmed under surgeon Kuldeep Stohr, with 41 severe cases and one death. Families demand a public inquiry.

A mother whose teenage daughter was among more than 200 patients found to have been harmed by a now-suspended NHS orthopaedic surgeon says she no longer has any faith in the hospital that carried out the operation. Lynn, whose 13-year-old daughter Tammy was treated at Addenbrooke's Hospital in Cambridge, described the scale of the failures as "ridiculous".

Figures made public on Monday show that 209 patients experienced harm while under the care of surgeon Kuldeep Stohr. Of those, 41 cases were graded as severe and one patient died. The numbers appeared in a report drawn up for the board of directors at Cambridge University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust (CUH), which runs Addenbrooke's.

The trust said it was "deeply sorry". Stohr has previously stated that she was fully co-operating with the investigation into her work.

Screws placed in the wrong position

Tammy's family was among the first to be given the results of an independent investigation last year. Her lawyers say the trust provided a written admission that the surgery fell below acceptable standards. Screws intended to be fixed into Tammy's hip joints to help her move more freely were positioned incorrectly and failed to attach properly to the bone.

Lynn said the sheer number of affected patients could not be brushed aside. "One or two can be classed as a mistake, but this amount - no," she said. She added that the situation was especially hard for parents who had watched their children go back into theatre for further operations.

She also questioned who had compiled the board report, saying relatives no longer believed what the hospital told them.

More than 900 cases examined

The wider review being carried out by CUH has so far assessed the treatment of over 900 patients. A large share of the cases involve children who were operated on by Stohr.

The board report had been posted on the trust's website before a meeting scheduled for Wednesday. It was then taken down after journalists approached the trust for comment. The trust said a "confidential interim update" had been "shared by mistake in our public board papers".

Stohr has been absent from work since March 2024. She was suspended by the hospital, with the trust initially citing personal reasons.

Calls for a public inquiry

Another parent, Natasha, is pressing for a public inquiry into how children treated by Stohr came to be injured. Her daughter Neave, aged 19, is among those affected.

The trust expects to release its final conclusions in November. Chief executive Nicola Ayton said the findings would be given to patients and their families ahead of publication.

Elizabeth Maliakal of Hudgell Solicitors, which acts for several of the families, said she anticipated the final report would be "damning". She said some of her clients, including children, had undergone significant operations they did not need - procedures that brought no benefit and left them in pain for years.

"I expect the final report from the trust, once all the findings of the independent review panel are known, to be highly critical," she said, pointing out that fatal harm had already been confirmed in at least one instance, alongside many other injuries.

Kuldeep Stohr, Addenbrooke's Hospital, Cambridge University Hospitals, NHS surgeon suspended, patient harm review, orthopaedic surgery children, public inquiry NHS, Hudgell Solicitors

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