NHS Tayside staff banned from shredding documents after Sam Eljamel logbooks destroyed

A health board has banned staff from shredding any documentation after logbooks linked to a disgraced neurosurgeon were destroyed.

NHS Tayside made the instruction to staff to preserve material which may relate to Sam Eljamel after dozens of theatre logbooks linked to the disgraced surgeon were destroyed.

The decision comes as a public inquiry was sparked by his former patients, some of whom were left with life-changing injuries.

Eljamel, originally from Libya, was head of neurosurgery at Dundee’s Ninewells Hospital from 1995 until his suspension in December 2013.

The Eljamel Inquiry, set up to investigate the surgeon’s professional practice, was announced by the Scottish Government in September 2023.

Its remit includes how concerns about Eljamel were responded to by his employer NHS Tayside and whether the systems in place to protect patients were adequate.

NHS Tayside says it’s committed to trying to ensure no further documentation is destroyed in error.