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Numbers keep rising

18/ 7/2002

AS the inquiry closed in on their Christmas recess, the number of patients under the spotlight was over 400 and still rising.

That left them with no option but to delay the report again, this time to April. Soon after, with the numbers reviewed now over 500, this was put back to the final report day of July.

For some perspective it's worthwhile remembering Prof Richard Baker's Department of Health audit believed Shipman guilty of 236 killings, but admitted this could rise up to 345 - numbers the inquiry analysis were exceeding.

Dame Janet Smith said in December 2001: "There remains a great deal of work to be done before the interim report is published.

"I had said that I hoped I would be able to publish the report early in the new year but that is not now possible, the main reason being that the number of cases are greater than anticipated.

"We are running behind. However, I think it is more important that we ensure all investigations are complete before writing the report, rather than publishing in accordance with the timetable."

It's indicative of the size of the task that reporting for phase one patient deaths came after much of the hearings into phase two had been carried out.