£1.2 million wages for private hospital boss after care death failings

07 October 2023 , 17:37

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Care CEO Dr Tony Romero

A director at a private healthcare firm which has been fined a record sum over the suicide of a patient has raked in more than £1million in a year’s earnings.

Cygnet Health Care Limited was hit with a £1.53m fine last month after pleading guilty to failing to provide safe care after a patient took her own life at one of its ­hospitals. The criminal court case was brought by the Care Quality Commission (CQC). Now it has emerged the firm’s parent company Cygnet Health UK Limited handed its highest-paid director £1.2million in 2021.

City of London magistrates were told how the young woman admitted to a ward in Cygnet Hospital, Ealing, was able to take her own life in 2019 despite the hospital being aware of the risk of her self-harming. The CQC had rated the hospital inadequate after finding four patients had self-harmed despite being under “one-to-one” observation by staff.

The City of London Magistrates' Court (PA)

A BBC Panorama investigation that year led to four staff being convicted of abusing patients at another Cygnet facility in County Durham. CQC’s Jane Ray said: “People at such a frightening time in their life should be able to expect safe care. It’s unacceptable this young woman’s safety wasn’t well managed... when she needed them the most.” Cygnet, whose group CEO is Dr Tony Romero, said: “The CQC inspected Cygnet Hospital Ealing in May 2022 when they rated it as ‘Good’. We always take our responsibilities seriously.”

Simon Murphy