Heart surgeon cleared after probe

Dr Hardy Remmen has agreed to return to work

An Aberdeen heart surgeon has been cleared to return to work following an investigation into the number of patients who had died after receiving treatment.

An independent report has cleared Dr Hardy Remmen and a statement issued by the Grampian University Hospitals Trust said the surgeon had agreed to return to work.

He gave up surgical procedures after concerns were raised about his work on two occasions last year.

His lawyer had been pressing for his reinstatement along with a public apology.

The trust are reassured by an independent audit carried out by the Cardiothoracic Society of Great Britain and Ireland which dispels concerns about Mr Remmen's mortality and morbidity figures

Grampian University Hospitals Trust statement

The trust say patients can now continue to benefit from Mr Remmen's considerable surgical and clinical skills.

The surgeon, who is in his 40s, went on leave in April last year.

He is due to return to work in thoracic surgery at Aberdeen Royal Infirmary, which he joined in January 1999 as a Cardiothoracic surgeon.

Mr Remmen's work was independently reviewed in August 1999, after which he underwent further training in Glasgow before returning to Aberdeen in December 1999.

Then last June, the trust said concerns had arisen in relation to his cardiac surgery, such as by-pass operations and valve replacement, and the length of time patients had spent in hospital following their operations.

Surgical skills

In a statement issued on Friday, the trust said: "The Trust are reassured by an independent audit carried out by the Cardiothoracic Society of Great Britain and Ireland which dispels concerns about Mr Remmen's mortality and morbidity figures.

"The trust, in co-operation with Mr Remmen and his advisers, following consultation with the Royal College of Surgeons, have agreed that Mr Remmen will return to work in Thoracic Surgery.

"Mr Remmen's decision in this regard supports the trust's aspiration to develop the Thoracic Surgical Service to the people of Grampian and other neighbouring areas in Scotland.

"We believe this development will enable patients to continue to benefit from Mr Remmen's considerable surgical and clinical skills."

The trust refused to give further details of Mr Remmen's previous work, although he is known to have worked in a hospital in England prior to his move to Aberdeen.