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After dropping charges against a suspected nurse on Friday, UK'sGreater Manchester Police (GMP) revealed they plan to interview 500more people in connection with suspicious deaths and up to 40 casesof patients at Stepping Hill Hospital in Stockport, Cheshire, beingpoisoned after saline drips were found to be contaminated withinsulin. GMP's assistant chief constable, Terry Sweeney, told the press theinvestigation was one of the most complex they had ever worked on,"comparable in size and scope to the Manchester bomb inquiry,"where the Provisional Irish Republican Army (IRA) planted a massivebomb that devastated a busy shopping area in nearby centralManchester in June 1996. The announcement came shortly after they dropped all chargesagainst a nurse, 27-year-old Miss Rebecca Leighton, whom theyarrested 5 weeks ago in connection with the deaths of threepatients, all linked to the deliberate contamination of salinesolution. Their treatment at Stepping Hill hospital started aroundthe first week of July. At first the police were looking into the deaths of five patients,but two were later dropped from the investigation. On Friday, theyrevealed they could be dealing with the deaths of another fourpatients, bringing the total to seven. And they suspect there are a further 40 cases of poisoning. Putting insulin into patients' saline drips causes their bloodsugar to drop. The police were called in after an experienced nursebecame concerned when she noticed that an unusually high number ofpatients on her ward seemed to have very low levels of blood sugar. The police found a batch of solutions contaminated with insulin ina hospital storeroom. The police say they plan to interview hospital staff, patients andvisitors. They have already interview 200 of the 700 people theywish to speak to and envisage the investigation will take a longtime to complete. The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) said the reason the policedropped the charges against Leighton is because CPS lawyers saidthere was not enough evidence to pursue a case against her. It appears that the main evidence against her was fingerprints on abag of saline that appeared to have been punctured by a needle,according to a Manchester Evening News report of the court hearing. However, if new evidence emerges, it is possible Leighton may stillstand trial, as the CPS said it would consider reinstating thecharges, particularly where the allegations are serious, reportsThe Telegraph. Leighton denies the charges. In a statement read by her solicitorshe thanked her friends and family and her fianc for theirsupport, without which she does not know how she would have coped: "I have been living in hell and was locked up in prison forsomething I had not done" said Leighton in her statement. She added that during the weeks she spent in prison, she wasfrustrated knowing that the person who actually did "these terribleacts" was still at large. Meanwhile the Nursing and Midwifery Council said they would bekeeping in place an interim order to suspend Leighton from itsregister. Written by Catharine Paddock PhD Copyright: Medical News Today Not to be reproduced without permission of Medical News Today Additional References Citations. The e-commerce company in China offers quality products such as China ND YAG Laser Tattoo Removal , RF Screen, and more. For more , please visit Laser Controller today!
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