How Does an Inquiry Inquire? A Brief Note on the Working Methods of the Bristol Royal Infirmary Inquiry
| Published date | 01 December 2001 |
| DOI | http://doi.org/10.1111/1467-6478.00204 |
| Date | 01 December 2001 |
JOURNAL OF LAW AND SOCIETY
VOLUME 28, NUMBER 4, DECEMBER 2001
ISSN: 0263-323X, pp. 590–601
How Does an Inquiry Inquire?
A Brief Note on the Working Methods of the Bristol Royal
Infirmary Inquiry
Mavis Maclean*
This paper draws on the author’s experience as a panel member for the
Bristol Royal Infirmary Inquiry into the care of children receiving
complex cardiac services at the BRI between 1984 and 1995 to
describe the process of inquiry and to reflect on recent moves towards
a more managed court system, in both civil and criminal jurisdictions.
We may begin to question the traditional sharp distinction between
adversarial and inquisitorial court processes and to consider the
similarities as well as the differences.
INTRODUCTION
In October 1998, the Bristol Royal Infirmary Inquiry, chaired by Ian
Kennedy, began its work. The terms of reference were to inquire into the
care of children receiving complex cardiac services at the Bristol Royal
Infirmary (BRI) between 1984 and 1995 and relevant related issues. We
were asked to make findings as to the adequacy of the services provided; to
establish what action was taken both within and outside the hospital to deal
with concerns raised about the surgery, and to identify any failure to take
appropriate action promptly; to reach conclusions about these events and,
finally, to make recommendations which could help to secure high quality
care across the National Health Service. Professor Sir Brian Jarman and
Rebecca Howard and I sat as panel members. It was a harrowing and
demanding experience for us all.
The report,
1
published in July 2001, speaks for all the panel members. It
found that the mortality rate for children under a year old undergoing open
590
ßBlackwell Publishers Ltd 2001, 108 Cowley Road, Oxford OX4 1JF, UK and 350 Main Street, Malden, MA 02148, USA
*Director, Oxford Centre for Family Law and Policy, Department of Social
Policy, University of Oxford, 32 Wellington Square, Oxford, OX1 2ER, England
1Learning from Bristol, Report of the Public Inquiry into Children’s Heart Surgery at
the BRI 1984–95 (2001; Cm 5207).
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