It’s a disgrace NHS can hide failings over killer Valdo Calocane – if rules stop them telling truth, they MUST change
WHAT is it about the state and its shocking tendency to want to hide the truth about its lethal mistakes?
When the paranoid schizophrenic Valdo Calocane stabbed Barnaby Webber, Grace O’Malley-Kumar and Ian Coates to death, it quickly became clear he was known to authorities.
In fact, not only was he known to them but one doctor had previously warned that Calocane’s mental illness was so severe he could “end up killing someone”.
And so it came to pass in an unthinkable tragedy on the streets of Nottingham in June 2023.
No wonder the families of Barnaby and Grace, both 19, and Ian, 65, demanded full transparency regarding what treatment Calocane had — or didn’t have — on the health service.
In a statement they said they had “grave concerns about the conduct of the NHS”.
And, quite rightly, they wanted to understand exactly what happened with this violent individual so that any further tragedies could be prevented.
But, incredibly, the NHS initially said it would NOT publish a comprehensive report laying out the horrendous failings in the treatment and risk assessment of Calocane.
The reason? “Patient confidentiality and data protection issues.”
How insulting this red-tape excuse was to the families and to the public’s right to know.
Last night, in a screeching U-turn, NHS England gave way and did publish the report in full.
It apparently did so for one reason only — that there had been a public outcry over its attempted cover-up.
What we learned was shocking.
Calocane was not forced to have long-lasting anti-psychotic medication because he did not like needles.
Other patients cared for by Nottinghamshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust also committed “extremely serious” acts of violence, including stabbings, between 2019 and 2023.
In one assessment carried out by mental health workers, the risk to staff was “managed” by making arrangements for workers not to visit Calocane’s home alone.
But, in a staggering dereliction of duty, a plan for the “hazards” if he came off his medication and disengaged with mental health services was not developed.
Overall, the report detailed four hospital admissions between 2020 and 2022 and multiple contacts with community teams before he was discharged to his GP because of a lack of interaction with mental health services.
Investigators found that “the offer of care and treatment available for VC was not always sufficient to meet his needs” and this was “not unique” to his case.
Dereliction of duty
Health officials have admitted it is “clear the system got it wrong”.
And, across the NHS in England, mental health services have been ordered not to discharge people if they do not attend appointments.
But the fact is that Calocane’s case has been marked by a litany of failure by the authorities, in every conceivable way.
Rather than face a murder trial, Calocane was able to admit to the partial defence of diminished responsibility, due to mental illness.
His defence to murder would have relied on the severity of his condition, and it was argued in court that this was the reason he committed the terrible acts of violence that left three people dead.
Following the stabbings, Calocane drove his van into three other people, leaving them seriously injured, resulting in more lives ruined.
Calocane’s family shared his partial records in a documentary for the BBC’s Panorama, screened last year, but they were only able to access these after the end of the court proceedings.
How insulting to the memory of the victims and their loved ones that until last night’s full report was released — squeezed out as the day was over for most people — “patient confidentiality” was cited as a reason for withholding information about the failure of medical professionals to prevent this tragedy.
Patient confidentiality must not be used as a shield
Julie Bindel
After all, had the NHS done what it is supposed to do, Calocane’s victims would likely be alive today.
When we hear about the crisis in the NHS, it tends to be about people dying of sepsis in corridors, or spending hours in agony in A&E.
We hear of infections raging through hospital wards because cutbacks mean less attention to hygiene.
What we do not hear about are the terrible consequences of failing to treat or risk assess in serious cases of mental illness. But we must. Those responsible must be held to account.
Patient confidentiality must not be used as a shield to cover up monumental institutional and individual failures.
The signs of serious risk were evident for some time before the killings.
The day he was discharged, a judge issued a warrant for Calocane’s arrest because he had failed to appear in court over his assault on a police officer — yet police did nothing.
There needs to be an urgent public inquiry — not just into this triple tragedy, but into the failings in psychiatric care in the NHS.
When so many lives have been destroyed, data protection and patient confidentiality are the last thing victims’ families need to hear about. Transparency is vital.