‘Predatory’ nurse targeted women with eating disorders
- 16 July 2008;The Times
More than 20 vulnerable women battling eating disorders were manipulated into sexual relationships by a “predatory” senior nurse because of inadequate management by his NHS bosses, an investigation concluded today.
David Britten, former manager of the Peter Dally Clinic, in Westminster, preyed on at least 23 patients over a 20-year period before allegations of sexual misconduct emerged. They only came to light after the nurse - now 54 - was sacked by the centre for unrelated matters.
An investigation, commissioned by North West London Strategic Health Authority - now NHS London - concluded that poor management, missed opportunities and the reluctance of his vulnerable victims to speak out allowed the abuse to carry on. He was described in the report as a “manipulative predator who represented a clear danger to women”.
Mr Britten has not faced any criminal charges, with the Criminal Prosecution Service claiming there was insufficient evidence. Alison McKenna, who chaired the investigation, said: “The effect of David Britten’s abuse of these vulnerable women cannot be overestimated. David Britten was a specialist in eating disorders and would have known that affected individuals can be very compliant and eager to please. He deliberately targeted vulnerable patients, grooming them for his own sexual gratification.
Trish Morris-Thompson, the NHS London chief nurse, apologised on behalf of the health service.
She said: “As a nurse and a midwife, I am appalled by David Britten’s actions and that they went unchecked for so long. He abused not just these women but also his position of professional trust.”
The Peter Dally Clinic closed in 2001 when the Central and North West London Mental Health Trust took over and Britten’s activities were uncovered. A new eating disorder service was opened a year later with new staff.
Professor Morris-Thompson said: “This report has lessons for NHS organisations around the country and it is my job to ensure that the lessons are widely disseminated. They will be.”
The report said the NHS took appropriate action in dismissing him but said that the Nursing and Midwifery Council did not take action to suspend him from - or strike him off - the nursing register until 2004, despite having received a string of allegations over the previous two years.
Mr Britten was portrayed as a romantic hero among patients and staff - but in fact he was behaving like a paedophile, Sarah Harman, the lawyer representing some of the 23 victims, said. She added: “Their lives in some cases have been ruined by the way he behaved.”
They continue to call on police to take action against him, she added. The report also raised questions over four other members of staff at the clinic, all of whom left the centre in 2001. Their identities were not disclosed - but it was understood that two of the workers were still employed by the NHS. The report severely criticised the role of the Nursing and Midwifery Council, for failing to provide adequate information about Britten during the inquiry.
Prof Morris-Thompson, who confirmed many notes collected in the 1980s had gone missing, described the NMC’s role during the investigation as “very unhelpful”.
Mr Britten’s current location was not known, although research by a private detective suggested he might have set up home in northern France since the scandal. Claire Murdoch, chief executive of Central and North West London NHS Foundation Trust, admitted she was “astonished” that other members of staff did not suspect Mr Britten despite a series of investigations into his conduct.
It later emerged he was sacked for eight counts of gross misconduct including meeting the patients individually, showing favouritism, conducting meetings behind closed doors, holding the keys to their flats and blocking complaints against him.
At the time of his dismissal there was a feeling that he was conducting unprofessional relationships but women did not want to talk,” Professor Morris-Thompson added. She said a “systematic failure” was to blame rather than individual faults
Speaking after the results were published, one of Mr Britten’s victims told how she was frogmarched out of the clinic after first raising suspicions about him in the late 1990s. She said: “He had a very disarming personality - making me feel special at what was a very vulnerable time. It was only after our time together that I realised what he had done. When I heard he was also abusing another patient I confronted him and he just laughed, saying ’Who will believe someone in your state of mind?’ The following day I visited the clinic and complained to another member of staff, who initially said they’d help. But that person was unable to get their message across and when I complained again I was frogmarched out of the building. He had built up a wall of allies around him and was untouchable. She added that the NHS’s estimate of 23 victims was just a “drop in the ocean”. “There could be hundreds more - I would hate to estimate,” she said. Another victim, who believed she was in a monogamous relationship with Mr Britten for more than a decade, said she was disappointed by the report, claiming many members of staff at the clinic were complicit in his affairs The woman, who described him as “the love of her life”, told how at least four professionals - including several consultants - knew that she was seeing him She said she only became aware of his other affairs when he was disciplined and sacked. Calling on four other members of staff to face disciplinary action, she said: “This report is just the beginning of our fight. What I really want is for this man to be tracked down and shamed. He has got away with this and he is laughing at us. But I also think the other professionals who were well aware of his affairs have gotten off too lightly. They knew exactly what was going on - I remember one member of staff waving us away as I went home with him in his car.