'Shipman killed my mum'

Dr Harold Shipman: Thought to have killed hundreds

The first report of the Shipman Inquiry says the GP murdered 215 of his patients. Here Chris Bird, a director of Manchester City football club, recalls the day Dr Shipman broke the news that his mother Violet had unexpectedly died. The inquiry has ruled that the doctor killed her.

Mum was just 60 when she passed away in May 1993. She was a very, very caring individual who would talk to everybody - the perfect kind of person to have as your mum.

We lived about a mile and a half apart, so it was very rare that a day went by where we didn't see each other or speak to each other.

Chris Bird: "Angry is not a strong enough word"

That morning she called to say that she was feeling a little bit unwell and she was expecting Dr Shipman out at some point. Mum suffered with rheumatoid arthritis, and she also had problems with very severe headaches for many, many years.

An hour or so later, Dr Shipman called me on my mobile. He wanted me to come home straightaway. I could hear Dad in the background, he was hysterical and I just said: 'How bad is she?'

And Shipman said: 'It's very bad.' And I said: 'Will she be OK?' And he said: 'No, she's had a massive coronary and she's passed away.' I hung up and drove straight to the house.

Suspicions raised

Within days of Mum's death, my wife sensed that there was something not right about the circumstances.

Mum would have felt he was going to make her better because she trusted him

Mum had never had any heart complaints. And if she'd had a massive coronary, injecting her with morphine and then leaving her on her own, as Dr Shipman had done, was not the right thing to do.

But he'd been our family doctor for many, many years and we found it difficult to call into question what he did and what he said.

When he was arrested five years later, we immediately thought 'No, surely not.' Dr Shipman was still our family doctor, the kind of doctor we'd always thought he was.

The once trusted GP is now in prison

But as the investigation went on and suspicions grew stronger, my dad rang the police.

Since then we've been going through a real raft of emotions. I'm still shocked by it all and numbed by it all. My dad is still angry and upset and confused. And it's not just us; there are hundreds of people in the same boat.

Even those told that their husband or wife or grandmother or grandfather wasn't one of the victims will have a huge question mark - with so many killings, it would be hard to believe.

All trust gone

More checks and balances need to be in place. There should be audits done on each practice, and a patients' body that you can talk to if you've got any problems or any suspicions.

Shipman Inquiry

Already convicted of 15 killings

200 more patients added to toll

'Real suspicion' he killed another 45

If a doctor has had problems, then his whole profile should transfer with him when he moves. That should be checked by an independent body and should be made public to his patients.

After all, we grow up trusting two sets of people the most: our parents and our doctor. You can't put your life in somebody's hands without knowing everything about them.

Too great a loss

Angry is not a strong enough word for how I feel. He's completely wrecked the trust of many people, the faith they should have in their doctors. I find it very difficult now to even contemplate going to a doctor and that's wrong.

His practice won an award for charity fundraising

Shipman was our family GP for years. I never had any worries about going to see him, and neither did my parents.

My mum had total faith in him and that's the most upsetting thing. I can visualise Mum looking at him and being glad that he gave her that injection. She would have felt he was going to make her better because she trusted him.

I don't think I'll ever feel there'll be closure on this. The man that did this is still alive, yet I've lost a mother and a great friend.

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