Surgeon wins dismissal case

The surgeon fell short of the standards required

A consultant surgeon, who said he had been sacked for "whistle-blowing", was unfairly dismissed, an employment tribunal has found.

But the panel did not support Robert Phipps's claims that he was sacked because of the concerns he raised about "inadequate care" for breast-cancer patients at Bradford Hospitals NHS Trust.

The tribunal supported the Trust's view that the 47-year-old breast cancer specialist had not been clear about his career history and had fallen short of the standards required in his job.

Mr Phipps, who left the Trust in September 2000, told the tribunal he had been concerned patients had not received the right radiotherapy treatment.

'Fallen short'

He also made a serious allegation about the professional performance of another surgeon.

But the tribunal's written judgement rejected claims of whistle-blowing and breach of contract.

I was shafted because I blew the whistle

Robert Phipps

It said that if the proper procedures had been followed, there would have been a "100% likelihood that the applicant would have been fairly dismissed".

The chief executive of the Trust, David Jackson, told the tribunal that Mr Phipps was dismissed when colleagues questioned aspects of his work.

The trust welcomed the key part of the panel's ruling.

In a statement, the Trust said: "In outlining its reasons for its decision, the panel echoed the findings of our own investigation, citing that Mr Phipps had 'fallen far short of the standard of conduct' expected of him."

Mr Phipps said: "I was shafted because I blew the whistle. The tribunal have not gone with that, but that is fine by me."