Tag: nhs

Revealed: Sensitive NHS documents on royals, aristocrats and tycoons leaked after Russian hackers target health service

Hundreds of thousands of sensitive NHS documents, some relating to British and foreign Royals, senior judges and members of the House of Lords, have been stolen by Russian hackers, The Mail on Sunday can reveal.

The unprecedented data breach, one of the largest to hit the health service, has seen 169,000 confidential documents dumped on the dark web after the ransomware gang exploited a bug in software provided to NHS bodies by US tech giant Oracle.

Many of those affected by the leak are high-profile NHS private patients – with some invoicing details from Barts NHS Health Trust in London linked to unnamed patients from royal residences including King Charles’s official home Clarence House, Buckingham Palace, Sandringham and Windsor Castle.

It is unclear which Royals were treated and for what purpose but the leak raises serious concerns about the security of medical details of the Royal Household as the King continues to be treated for an undisclosed form of cancer.

The grave incident also casts doubt over controversial plans to introduce digital ID systems in the UK as Oracle’s billionaire owner, Larry Ellison, is the biggest donor to the Tony Blair Institute, which is lobbying for such systems to be introduced. Others affected by the breach include the BBC, Premier League football clubs, British aristocrats, a member of the Bahraini Royal Family and billionaire business moguls.

The files, which have been seen by the MoS, also include data linked to children being treated at NHS hospitals, women undergoing fertility treatment and patients receiving kidney dialysis.

The extraordinary breach comes after cybersecurity experts warned in October that the Oracle software used by the NHS and the Treasury – which provides financial management and HR support to organisations – was vulnerable to Russian hackers, and that attempts at ‘exploitation’ were ‘highly likely’.

Researchers at Google said hackers from a gang known as Clop had sent emails to executives at ‘numerous organisations… alleging the theft of sensitive data’ and demanding money for its safe return.

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With 850,000 on waiting lists, NHS spends £300k hiring actors to pretend to be patients

Scotland’s cash-strapped NHS is under fire for spending hundreds of thousands of pounds hiring professional actors to pretend to be patients.

The Scottish Mail on Sunday can reveal that a body called NHS Education for Scotland is setting aside an astonishing £360,000 to pay actors and role-players to impersonate people with illnesses and medical conditions.

The body claims the fake patients have a vital role to play in training doctors and nurses.

But at a time when 850,000 people in Scotland are currently on a waiting list for NHS treatment, including diagnostic tests, critics said spending cash on actors was a waste of precious resources.

Meanwhile the health service is facing dire warnings over its financial future.

And Callum McGoldrick, investigations manager at the TaxPayers’ Alliance campaign group said: ‘Spending more than £300,000 on professional actors to play patients while more than half a million Scots sit on NHS waiting lists is completely backwards.

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NHS Doctors Were Paid to Knowingly Implant Deadly Heart Device

Two of the UK’s leading transplant centres continued fitting a heart device that they knew was deadlier than its rival product. Medtronic’s HeartWare HVAD was a pump surgically implanted for end-stage heart failure – and it was well documented that its mortality rate was significantly higher than other options. But top cardiologists at both hospitals were found to be paid consultants for Medtronic, the hospitals were aware of their involvement, and the NHS had already raised concerns. Were leading doctors deliberately implanting deadly devices? 

The Staggering HVAD Mortality Rate

Patients with a weakened heart can be offered a Left Ventricular Assist Device (LVAD) if they are deemed unsuitable for a transplant, or stuck waiting for one. For many people, the LVAD helping to pump blood around the body is their only chance of survival outside of a transplant.  

LVADs have saved lives for decades and the two top competitors were Medtronic, who produced the HVAD device, and Abbott, who made the Heartmate III. In 2018, an audit was conducted by NHS Blood and Transplant (NHSBT) to compare the pumps’ performance, and shocking results were published in 2019: 

  • Medtronic: 54 of 119 patients (45%) died within two years 
  • Abbott: 15 of 97 patients (15%) died within the same period 
  • The number of strokes and instances of people requiring a new pump was also significantly higher for Medtronic 

They Knew – and Kept Implanting

The Freeman Hospital in Newcastle and Harefield in London continued using the pump for years, deciding to question the data rather than prioritise patient safety. Other hospitals, such as the Royal Papworth Hospital in Cambridge, made the call before the NHS analysis was even shared – they had picked up on the pattern themselves and stopped using the Medtronic device in February 2018, considering the Heartmate III to be superior. 

The Newcastle and London hospitals, however, continued to solely use the Medtronic device until 2021 when the manufacturer withdrew it from sale “in the interest of patient safety”. In the three years between the 2018 audit and 2021 withdrawal, 50% of patients with the Medtronic device died, compared to 19% of recipients of the Abbott device. 

Were They Paid to Implant It?

Until recently, the head of Freeman’s cardiothoracic department was Prof Stephan Schueler, also known as “king of the castle” by former colleagues. Public records later revealed that he had a decade-long relationship with the Medtronic manufacturer. Patients were not made aware of his financial relationship with the company, despite disclosure being a requirement of the General Medical Council (GMC) – the doctor’s regulator. 

The Freeman Hospital stated publicly that it was “aware” of the NHS data published in 2019, but felt its scientific reliability was lacking. 

At Harefield Hospital, André Simon was the director of heart and lung transplantation and ventricular assist devices. He had a similarly long-standing relationship with Medtronic, dating back to 2014. The hospital said it was “aware” of his work for Medtronic, and that it had been declared in multiple papers. They also confirmed that he was one of a number of senior people “involved” in deciding which devices are used and that there was “collective support” for the continued use of the Medtronic device until 2021.  

Dr John Dunning, who replaced André Simon at Harefield, said they continued to use the Medtronic device as “it was the preference” of his predecessor.  

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NHS Greenlights Controversial Puberty Blocker Trials, Will Inject Over 200 Kids as Young as 10

The UK’s National Health Service (NHS) has approved two clinical trials to study the effects of puberty blockers on children, involving up to 226 participants, with some as young as 10 years old.

The trials, set to begin recruitment in early 2025, aim to “gather evidence” on the impacts of these drugs after a ban on their routine NHS prescription earlier this year.

The Daily Mail reports:

They will be injected with the drugs to examine whether they could safely be used in future to help young people change their bodies and become more like the gender they self-identify as, rather than their gender at birth.

Researchers dismissed accusations that the trial could amount to ‘coercing’ children into taking the drugs, which potentially damage fertility, bone density and brain development.

They insisted it would be safe because they have planned the ‘most rigorous and safest study design’ which will involve ‘close monitoring’ of any potential side-effects and risks.

But campaigners branded the study’s launch ‘outrageous’, saying it should be halted.

The primary trial, led by King’s College London and the South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust, will divide participants into two groups: one receiving puberty blockers immediately for two years, and the other delayed by one year.

Children must be under 16, have a formal diagnosis of “gender incongruence,” and obtain parental consent.

“The youngest patients in the study, being led by researchers at King’s College London, will typically be ten to 11 years old for girls and 11 to 12 years old for boys. The maximum age will be 15 years and eleven months,” the Daily Mail reports.

The drugs, such as Triptorelin, administered via injection every six months, will be monitored for side effects.

A second, smaller trial with about 100 participants will focus on potential brain development effects by comparing blocked and unblocked groups.

These studies follow the 2024 Cass Review, an independent report commissioned by NHS England that criticized the lack of high-quality evidence supporting the use of puberty blockers and led to their prohibition outside research settings.

The review highlighted risks to bone density, fertility, and mental health from prior use at the Tavistock clinic’s Gender Identity Development Service (GIDS).

The trials are part of a £10.7 million NHS-funded research program. Results are expected in about four years.

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Fury after woke NHS supports first-cousin marriages despite risk of birth defects – and oppression against women

The NHS has been accused of ‘taking the knee’ to political correctness by advocating the benefits of marriages between cousins – despite it carrying an increased risk of birth defects and being used as a way to oppress women.

The guidance – which incredibly points out that it has been allowed in Britain since Henry VIII passed a law enabling him to marry Anne Boleyn’s cousin Catherine Howard – says that cousin marriage offers benefits such as ‘stronger extended family support systems’.

The practice, which is common in the British Pakistani community, has been linked to a greater prevalence of disorders such as cystic fibrosis or sickle cell disease.

Figures show that up to 20 per cent of the children treated for congenital problems in cities such as Sheffield, Glasgow and Birmingham are of Pakistani descent, compared with 4 per cent or lower in the wider population – and treating these problems costs the NHS billions.

The guidance, released by NHS England’s Genomics Education Programme, argues that ‘although first-cousin marriage is linked to an increased likelihood of a child having a genetic condition or a congenital anomaly, there are many other factors that also increase this chance (such as parental age, smoking, alcohol use and assisted reproductive technologies), none of which are banned in the UK’.

It claims inter-marriage offers benefits which include ‘stronger extended family support systems and economic advantages (resources, property and inheritance can be consolidated rather than diluted across households),’ and that as banning the practice would ‘stigmatise certain communities and cultural traditions’, the authorities should instead offer ‘genetic counselling, awareness-raising initiatives and public health campaigns’.

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Three NHS admin workers who made £412k selling fake Covid 19 vaccine records during lockdown are jailed for 10 years

A trio of NHS workers who made £412k by selling fake Covid 19 vaccination records have been jailed for 10 years.

Hakeem Walters, 29, Rokibul Islam, 31, and Muhammed Ahmed, 27, made their fortune while employed as administrators in Westfield Shopping Centre, Stratford.

They falsified records for 847 people at the Covid clinic to allow them to escape government lockdown rules and to travel abroad, Southwark Crown Court heard.

Kathryn Drummond, prosecuting, said: ‘They ultimately make profits at the expense of the wider public at a time of national crisis, namely the Covid pandemic.

‘Each of them held a position of trust at the relevant time as an employee within the NHS.

‘They falsified 1,648 vaccine records relating to 847 individuals. They did so for profit.

‘That enabled those 847 people to enjoy additional freedom in times of lockdown, freedoms reserved for those vaccinated against Covid-19.’

The trio charged people £250 each for fake vaccine records.

Islam had access to the National Immunisation Vaccination System (NIVS), the court heard.

‘Mr Islam sold his confidential login details to Mr Ahmed for £1,000,’ Ms Drummond said.

Ms Drummond added Islam began his work as a Band 3 administrator and clerical bank worker for the vaccine project in June 2021.

‘Every single vaccine record associated with his login was false. He began his work in the NHS at a time of crisis. He obtained wide access. He sold wider access for one thousand pounds. He never created any true or honest vaccination’, she said.

Once the entries were submitted the NHS Covid-19 App showed people were fully vaccinated.

‘That would enable them to travel, attend certain venues, apply for work, jobs that had restrictions in place,’ the prosecutor added.

Sentencing, Judge Sally-Ann Hales said: ‘Between August 17 and December 13 2021 you conspired to hack the NHS computer system to create false Covid vaccination records. You did so to make a financial gain for yourselves.

‘The evidence indicates that these conspiracies involved more people than just you three.

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NHS plans to DNA test all babies to assess disease risk

Every newborn baby in England will have their DNA mapped to assess their risk of hundreds of diseases, under NHS plans for the next 10 years.

The scheme, first reported by the Daily Telegraph, is part of a government drive towards predicting and preventing illness, which will also see £650m invested in DNA research for all patients by 2030.

Health Secretary Wes Streeting said gene technology would enable the health service to “leapfrog disease, so we’re in front of it rather than reacting to it”.

It comes after a study analysing the genetic code of up to 100,000 babies was announced in October.

The government’s 10-year plan for the NHS, which is set to be revealed over the coming few weeks, is aimed at easing pressure on services.

The Department for Health and Social Care said that genomics – the study of genes – and AI would be used to “revolutionise prevention” and provide faster diagnoses and an “early warning signal for disease”.

Screening newborn babies for rare diseases will involve sequencing their complete DNA using blood samples from their umbilical cord, taken shortly after birth.

There are approximately 7,000 single-gene disorders. The NHS study which began in October only looked for gene disorders that develop in early childhood and for which there are effective treatments.

Currently, newborn babies are offered a heelprick blood test that checks for nine serious conditions, including cystic fibrosis.

The health secretary said in a statement: “With the power of this new technology, patients will be able to receive personalised healthcare to prevent ill-health before symptoms begin, reducing the pressure on NHS services and helping people live longer, healthier lives.”

Streeting added: “The revolution in medical science means that we can transform the NHS over the coming decade, from a service which diagnoses and treats ill-health to one that predicts and prevents it.”

Sequencing DNA gives a lot of information about a person which can then be used to make predictions about the likelihood of them having particular genetic diseases, according to Prof Robin Lovell-Badge, a geneticist at the Francis Crick Institute.

These include conditions like muscular dystrophy, liver diseases and some kidney problems, he told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme.

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UK Turning Into ‘National Health State’, Says Think Tank

The UK is turning into a “National Health State,” the Resolution Foundation has said, after Chancellor Rachel Reeves announced a £29 billion annual increase in NHS funding.

The think tank’s analysis of Reeves’s Spending Review estimates that by the end of financial year 2028–29, the health service will account for half (49 percent) of all day-to-day public services spending, up from 34 percent in 2009–10.

On Wednesday, the chancellor announced a record £29 billion funding injection, which the Treasury said will deliver on the government’s promise to cut waiting lists, improve patient care, and modernise services.

Resolution Foundation Chief Executive Ruth Curtice said in a statement, “Health accounted for 90 per cent of the extra public service spending, continuing a trend that is seeing the British state morph into a National Health State, with half of public service spending set to be on health by the end of the decade.”

The Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) noted in its initial response to the Spending Review that the funding increase for the NHS was substantial, but questioned whether it will be enough to get the health service back to meeting its 18-week target for hospital waiting times within this Parliament, something which the think tank said was “enormously ambitious.”

£6 Billion to Speed up Tests and Treatments

After the Spending Review, Reeves announced that £6 billion of the allocated funds will be used to deliver up to four million additional NHS tests, scans, and procedures over the next five years.

This will be spent on ambulances, new scanners, increasing diagnostic centre capacity, and more Urgent Treatment Centres.

The government will also invest £30 billion in day-to-day maintenance and repair of the NHS estate, with over £5 billion allocated for critical repairs over the next five years.

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One of NHS’s biggest AI projects is halted after fears it used health data of 57 MILLION people without proper permissions

NHS England has paused a ground-breaking AI project designed to predict an individual’s risk of health conditions after concerns were raised data from 57 million people was being used without the right permissions.

Foresight, which uses Meta‘s open-source AI model, Llama 2, was being tested by researchers at University College London and King’s College London as part of a national pilot scheme exploring how AI could be used to tailor healthcare plans for patients based on their medical history.

But the brakes were applied to the pioneering scheme after experts warned even anonymised records could contain enough information to identify individuals, The Observer reported.

A joint IT committee between the British Medical Association (BMA) and the Royal College of General Practitioners (RCGP) also said it they had not been made aware that data collected for research into Covid was now being used to train the AI model. 

The bodies have also accused the research consortium, led by Health Data Research UK, of failing to consult an advisory body of doctors before feeding the health data of tens of millions of patients into Foresight.

Both BMA and RGCP have asked NHS England to refer itself to the Information Commissioner over the matter.

Professor Kamila Hawthorne, chair of RGCP, said the issue was one of ‘fostering patient trust’ that their data was not being used ‘beyond what they’ve given permission for.’

She said: ‘As data controllers, GPs take the management of their patients’ medical data very seriously, and we want to be sure data isn’t being used beyond its scope, in this case to train an AI programme.

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Exposed: NHS manager accused of Rushdie-style fatwa death threat over ‘insult to Mohammed’

An Islamist extremist working at one of London’s most famous hospitals has been suspended after being accused of issuing a fatwa-style death threat for blasphemy.

The Mail on Sunday can reveal that NHS employee Omar Abdallah Mansuur, 39 – an influential imam – faces claims that he decreed a fellow Muslim should get the death penalty for insulting the Prophet Mohammed.

His broadcast was made to tens of thousands of followers and is thought to be the first time a cleric in Britain has made such a threat.

The terrified victim, now in hiding in Europe, has been warned by police that it is too dangerous for him to visit the UK. ‘It is a living nightmare,’ he said last night. ‘My life is at risk and I am constantly looking over my shoulder.’

But last night, Mansuur denied issuing a death threat, saying he merely stated the Islamic punishment for blasphemy.

In some of his inflammatory diatribes, Mansuur appears on video from inside St Thomas’ Hospital – directly across the Thames from the Houses of Parliament – where he works in procurement.

One sequence shows him going into the hospital via an underground entrance and walking along a corridor before sitting down in an office.

Staff describe bespectacled Mansuur, a British national of Somali origin who lives in North London with his wife and children, as unassuming and polite. But his social media profiles tell a different story.

Using TikTok, Facebook and X, he reaches millions of followers with his hate-filled videos and live broadcasts.

On Friday, after the MoS passed on its evidence, the hospital said Mansuur had been suspended pending an investigation.

Yair Cohen, a lawyer representing the victim, said: ‘I am calling for immediate and decisive action to protect my client.

‘Police forces seem able to swiftly arrest people for far less serious social media activity.’

The National Secular Society said: ‘It’s appalling that here in the UK, Islamists are calling for the death of supposed blasphemers or those who leave Islam. The police and counter-extremism authorities must take this threat seriously, and people who incite murder against those who they see as offending their religion must face justice.’

In one broadcast, Mansuur says of the 32-year-old moderate imam, whom he accuses of making offensive remarks about the Prophet: ‘When he repents, he will be put to death in the manner Muslims are killed. If he refuses to repent he will be caught, killed, then thrown in a hole like a dog.’

The death threat victim vehemently denies insulting Islam and insists comments he made on social media were doctored. The Metropolitan Police said it had referred his complaint to police in the country in which he is hiding.

The target of the ‘fatwa’ told the Met in a statement that he fears he will suffer the same fate as French teacher Samuel Paty, who was beheaded near his school in Paris in 2020 after hate campaigners accused him of showing a cartoon of the Prophet to students.

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