BACKGROUND: BBC News: January 25, 2026: "For years they felt stonewalled, lied to and gaslit. Now they're angry." Karen Stirrat and Charmaine Lacock are mothers of children they say were exposed to infections while being treated for cancer at Glasgow's flagship "super hospital". They were some of the first parents to voice fears that something in the way the buildings were constructed was inherently unsafe.Dozens of vulnerable children like theirs with cancer or blood disorders became even more unwell while being treated at the hospital. Some of them died. Yet for years the body that runs the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital campus refused to accept evidence that water and ventilation systems could be to blame for infections. "From the very beginning we campaigned, with other families, and we got slated for that," says Karen. "We knew the truth, but we kept getting told we were just imagining things.""
The entire post can be read at:
https://share.google/CswfvM3s1tOOUJgS5
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PASSAGE OF THE DAY: "Prosecutors previously confirmed, in 2021, that investigations were under way into four deaths, including that of ten-year-old Milly Main. Main died in 2017 after a tube delivering medication became infected with Stenotrophomonas maltophilia, a bacteria linked to the hospital’s water system. She had been in remission from leukaemia when she caught the infection."
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PASSAGE TWO OF THE DAY: "It is understood that the deaths of three adults and three children have also now been included in the police investigation. They include Gail Armstrong, 73, who died in 2019 after contracted cryptococcus, a fungal infection linked to bird droppings, while having treatment for blood cancer, and Tony Dynes, 65, a father of two from East Kilbride who died in 2021 after contracting two infections while being treated for lymphoma. "
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PASSAGE THREE OF THE DAY: "The death of Andrew Slorance, 49, from Edinburgh, who died in 2020 after contracting Covid while awaiting a bone marrow transplant is part of the investigation. He also contracted aspergillosis, caused by breathing in spores of mould linked to soil and dust, while in the QEUH. An unnamed ten-year-old boy who died in 2018 after contracting cryptococcus in the hospital, and a three-year-old unnamed child who died after catching an infection in 2017, are also being investigated, the Scottish Mail on Sunday reported."
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STORY: "Police investigate more infection deaths at Glasgow hospital," by Reporter Craig McDonald' published by The Times, on January 25, 2026. (Craig McDonald is a news reporter for The Times and The Sunday Times in Scotland and previously worked at the Daily Record and Sunday Mail, Sunday Post and The Mail on Sunday. He has reported from countries including Afghanistan, Pakistan and the United States. His work across his previous titles has been recognised with several press awards.)
GIST: "The deaths of six patients who contracted infections while being treated at the scandal-hit Queen Elizabeth University Hospital (QEUH) in Glasgow are being investigated by police.
Prosecutors previously confirmed, in 2021, that investigations were under way into four deaths, including that of ten-year-old Milly Main.
Main died in 2017 after a tube delivering medication became infected with Stenotrophomonas maltophilia, a bacteria linked to the hospital’s water system. She had been in remission from leukaemia when she caught the infection.
It is understood that the deaths of three adults and three children have also now been included in the police investigation.
They include Gail Armstrong, 73, who died in 2019 after contracted cryptococcus, a fungal infection linked to bird droppings, while having treatment for blood cancer, and Tony Dynes, 65, a father of two from East Kilbride who died in 2021 after contracting two infections while being treated for lymphoma.
The death of Andrew Slorance, 49, from Edinburgh, who died in 2020 after contracting Covid while awaiting a bone marrow transplant is part of the investigation. He also contracted aspergillosis, caused by breathing in spores of mould linked to soil and dust, while in the QEUH.
An unnamed ten-year-old boy who died in 2018 after contracting cryptococcus in the hospital, and a three-year-old unnamed child who died after catching an infection in 2017, are also being investigated, the Scottish Mail on Sunday reported.
NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde (NHSGGC) acknowledged this month that there was probably a “causal connection” between patient infections and environmental factors, including the £1 billion hospital’s water system.
NHSGGC made the admission in its written submissions to the public inquiry examining the design and construction of the QEUH and neighbouring Royal Hospital for Children (RHC). The inquiry was launched in 2020 following the deaths of patients linked to infections at the hospital.
Meanwhile, Jeane Freeman, a former SNP health secretary, claimed that a former chief executive of NHSGGC hid vital information from her. Freeman said Jane Grant gave her personal assurances over the QEUH, despite later evidence showing bosses knew there was a problem with the water and ventilation at the hospital.
Freeman said: “You have former NHSGGC chief executives on wages and pensions larger than most people would enjoy, sitting in the inquiry saying things were not their responsibility because there was a scheme of delegation that gave it to someone else. That is outrageous.”
A spokesman for NHSGCC said: “In our closing [inquiry] statements, we acknowledged issues with past culture and communication and we are committed to continuing to improve our approach.”
• Milly’s death in hospital is a scandal, but it is barely wounding SNP
John Swinney, the first minister said on Sunday that it was “clear there’s been a cultural problem” at the health board, and said the issues at NHSGGC would be “flushed out” by Lord Brodie’s inquiry, and that the situation at the QEUH was “completely unacceptable”.
When challenged on BBC Scotland’s Sunday Show that it looked like families had been lied to, Swinney said: “It does look like that, but ultimately it’s for Lord Brodie to come to those conclusions.”
On Saturday evening, NHSGGC issued a clarification to its closing submissions to the inquiry, referring to its comments about “pressure” to open the hospital on time and stated this referred to internal pressure within the organisation.
NHSGGC offered a “sincere and unreserved apology” to the patients and families affected and said the QEUH and Royal Hospital for Children were safe.
Police Scotland said: “The Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service (COPFS) asked Police Scotland to investigate a number of deaths at QEUH campus in Glasgow. We have submitted a report to COPFS. As this investigation remains ongoing, it would be inappropriate to comment further.”
NHSGGC said: “We can confirm that we are continuing to support this investigation. It would be inappropriate to comment further.”
PUBLISHER'S NOTE: I am monitoring this case/issue/resource. Keep your eye on the Charles Smith Blog for reports on developments. The Toronto Star, my previous employer for more than twenty incredible years, has put considerable effort into exposing the harm caused by Dr. Charles Smith and his protectors - and into pushing for reform of Ontario's forensic pediatric pathology system. The Star has a "topic" section which focuses on recent stories related to Dr. Charles Smith. It can be found at: http://www.thestar.com/topic/charlessmith. Information on "The Charles Smith Blog Award"- and its nomination process - can be found at: http://smithforensic.blogspot.com/2011/05/charles-smith-blog-award-nominations.html Please send any comments or information on other cases and issues of interest to the readers of this blog to: hlevy15@gmail.com. Harold Levy: Publisher: The Charles Smith Blog.
SEE BREAKDOWN OF SOME OF THE ON-GOING INTERNATIONAL CASES (OUTSIDE OF THE CONTINENTAL USA) THAT I AM FOLLOWING ON THIS BLOG, AT THE LINK BELOW: HL:
https://www.blogger.com/blog/post/edit/120008354894645705/4704913685758792985
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FINAL WORD: (Applicable to all of our wrongful conviction cases): "Whenever there is a wrongful conviction, it exposes errors in our criminal legal system, and we hope that this case — and lessons from it — can prevent future injustices."
Lawyer Radha Natarajan:
Executive Director: New England Innocence Project;
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FINAL, FINAL WORD: "Since its inception, the Innocence Project has pushed the criminal legal system to confront and correct the laws and policies that cause and contribute to wrongful convictions. They never shied away from the hard cases — the ones involving eyewitness identifications, confessions, and bite marks. Instead, in the course of presenting scientific evidence of innocence, they've exposed the unreliability of evidence that was, for centuries, deemed untouchable." So true!
Christina Swarns: Executive Director: The Innocence Project;
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