The chairman of the inquiry into disgraced surgeon Sam Eljamel has promised to put his former patients at the centre of the process.
The inquiry will investigate matters related to the actions of the neurosurgeon, who worked for NHS Tayside between 1995 and 2014.
Eljamel was suspended in 2013 after concerns emerged, and campaigners claim more than 196 patients were harmed by him.
The independent public inquiry was announced by ministers in September 2023.
On Monday, Lord Weir and senior counsel to the inquiry, Jamie Dawson KC, met with Eljamel’s former patients and updated them on progress made and sought their views on the inquiry’s draft terms of reference.
Lord Weir said: “I regard the issues likely to be raised in this inquiry as of very significant importance. Finding answers to unresolved questions is a task to which my team and I are committed and dedicated.
“I will not hesitate to use the powers contained in the Inquiries Act 2005 that enable me to call for and recover evidence, and compel the attendance of witnesses, in order to exhaust the inquiry’s terms of reference. If that means challenging systems that were in place at the time, or, ultimately, criticising individuals, institutions or both, I will not shrink from doing so.”
Sam Eljamel is still operating on patients in Libya.
The inquiry will explore the 18 years he worked for NHS Tayside until he was suspended in 2013.
The inquiry team said they know damage has been done but they are determined to find the answers patients have waited so long for and undoubtedly deserve.
Jamie Dawson KC, who has represented patients at the Infected Blood Inquiry, told attendees: “You can leave today with my commitment that I and the inquiry team will approach the investigation of the terms of reference with courage and independence.
“The promises made today are real, that words will be matched with action. I and the inquiry team will do our very best to ensure that this process will find the answers for which you have waited for such a long time and which you undoubtedly deserve.
“The chair welcomes your views on these draft terms of reference. This is your opportunity to influence what the inquiry will ultimately consider.”
A spokesperson for Levy & McRae, a law firm that represents a substantial number of the patients affected, said Monday was an important step in securing both answers and justice.
“[Our clients] have suffered for many years, often in silence, without either explanation or remedy to what happened,” they said.
“Today marks a vital milestone in setting the terms of reference and timescales to secure justice for them.
“Our clients welcome the opportunity of working closely with Lord Weir, the independent clinical review and the Inquiry team to explore a wide range of issues which will not only help them to understand better what happened to them – and how it was allowed to, but also to help ensure that this can never happen again to future patients in Scotland and beyond.”
The consultation on the draft terms of reference is open for contributions from former patients and other interested parties until Friday, October 25.
The chair of the inquiry will then make his final recommendations to the cabinet secretary for health and social care as to what the terms of reference should be. A final decision on the terms of reference will be made by the cabinet secretary in due course.
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