Dr Martyn Pitman claimed retaliatory victimisation after raising morale concerns but tribunal says it was his manner that cost him his job
A doctor has said raising whistleblowing concerns about maternity care at his hospital “cost me very dearly” after he lost his employment tribunal.
Consultant obstetrician and gynaecologist Dr Martyn Pitman was dismissed earlier this year from his job at the Royal Hampshire county hospital (RHCH) in Winchester, where he had worked for 20 years.
He told the Southampton tribunal, which concluded earlier this month, that he had been “subjected to brutal retaliatory victimisation” after exercising his rights under the Public Interest Disclosure Act.
A tribunal judgment released on Friday said there had been “unanimous” agreement that the arguments behind the whistleblowing claim “fail and are dismissed”.
The judgment found the “overarching reason” for what has happened to Pitman was down to his “communication style” and “not the message he was trying to convey”.
Pitman said he now faces “the brutal reality of losing the career I have cherished” and he, his legal team and the British Medical Association will decide on “appropriate next steps”.
Pitman told the hearing that up to the spring of 2019, morale was deteriorating in the RHCH midwifery team. He said he was elected by the midwives to act as their “spokesperson”, which led to him raising issues with management.
He said his concerns had been about patient choice, including an emphasis...
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