Surgeon suspended after sexual harassment ruling

A "golden boy" transplant surgeon who was found to have sexually harassed female colleagues has been suspended for eight months.

Three of the alleged victims of James Gilbert were trainees at the Oxford Transplant Centre.

A Medical Practitioners Tribunal Service panel ruled that Mr Gilbert sexually harassed four women and inappropriately touched three of them.

One woman said his status was the "golden boy" of the department and that he was the "be-all and end-all for transplants in Oxford".

She said she did not feel she was in a "position of equal power" to speak out about the 47-year-old married father-of-two.

Another former trainee formally complained in 2014 to Oxford University Hospitals (OUH) NHS Foundation Trust that she was being sexually harassed, but said it was "swiftly swept under the carpet".

In May 2021 the trust excluded Mr Gilbert after concerns were raised but he was allowed to return six weeks later with restrictions on his practice.

An email was then sent to surgical trainees inviting them to flag up concerns, leading to Mr Gilbert's dismissal in May 2022.

The General Medical Council then outlined a catalogue of inappropriate behaviour between 2009 and 2022, which he denied.

But the panel ruled that Mr Gilbert sexually harassed the women and abused his senior position.

He reportedly said to one trainee: "You're a well together girl, you must always wear matching underwear. What kind are you wearing now?"

Another trainee was allegedly asked about matching underwear, and on one occasion he reportedly stared at her and said: "I have been watching you and you're pretty perfect."

Mr Gilbert was ruled to have targeted her by tickling her and massaging her shoulders without her consent numerous times, and squeezed her thigh between his thighs under the operating table.

A third colleague was reportedly told she "looked great in a pair of scrubs and didn't need to go to the gym" and "I bet you are really wild on a night out".

The tribunal also heard how Mr Gilbert is said to have made racist comments when talking about people from Africa.

Finding his fitness to practise impaired because of misconduct, tribunal chairman Andrew McLoughlin said he had "taken a number of steps to remediate his failings".

But he concluded that Mr Gilbert's "insight" was "not fully developed into the full extent of his behaviour", and he would "benefit from further time to digest and reflect on the findings".

Mr Gilbert has 28 days to appeal against the suspension.

He was the chief medical officer overseeing The New Foscote Hospital in Banbury, Oxfordshire, and the Royal Buckinghamshire Hospital in Aylesbury but left after the hearing.

The private hospitals also carry out NHS hernia waiting list clinics and surgeries.

Dr Andrew Brent, chief medical officer at OUH, said: "With the conclusion of these proceedings, I would like to thank staff who stood up and called out unacceptable behaviour.

"They have had to revisit this a number of times and we recognise how difficult that must have been.

"We will continue to offer our staff support and to encourage all our people to feel able to challenge behaviours that do not fit with our organisational or professional values."

In a statement, The New Foscote and The Royal Buckinghamshire Hospitals said Mr Gilbert's hiring was discussed with his previous employer and with the GMC, prior to his appointment.

"There was unanimous agreement that he is a skilled surgeon. The clinical care that he provided to his patients has never been questioned and his surgery and his outcomes are of the highest standards," it said.

The statement said he was employed "with specific safeguards in place" and that it was "with the understanding that his long-term position [would] depend on the final GMC ruling".

"Since his appointment, he has delivered a great service to the local population on behalf of the NHS," it said.

It added Mr Gilbert "behaved impeccably" from when he was hired in 2022 and had reflected on his previous behaviour.

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