Woman quizzed over hospital sabotage
A hospital worker was arrested today on suspicion of sabotaging drip bags on a children's ward in Essex.
The 21-year-old woman is being questioned about damaging intravenous bags at the NHS Basildon University Hospital.
Police said she was being investigated on suspicion of criminal damage and a public order offence involving contamination of goods.
The 21 damaged bags were found in a store room at the hospital on 19April - the day after a three-year-old girl fell seriously ill and died.
A post-mortem examination later found the child's death was not related and she died of natural causes.
Sources close to the investigation said the woman was an employee at the hospital. She was arrested at her home in Wickford, Essex.
A batch of more than 30 intravenous bags, which contained sugars and salts to hydrate young patients, were seized by police from the store room after they were found to be wet. Of the batch, 21 were punctured and have been sent for tests to see if they have fingerprints on them or have been spiked with dangerous substances.
Security was stepped up at the children's unit at the hospital.
The three children's wards, Puffin, Penguin and Wagtail, can only be entered by staff with a swipe card or by visitors who speak to a member of staff through an intercom.
The intravenous bags were kept in a locked store room with a numerical key pad and served all three wards.
Police said they were not investigating any other events at the hospital.
Alan Whittle, the chief executive of the NHS hospital trust, said all stocks of intravenous fluids in the hospital were checked immediately and no other damaged bags were found.
He emphasised there had never been any indication of a link between the death of the girl and the damaged bags. Mr Whittle said: "Having spoken to the clinical staff concerned, I was confident that the checks our staff carry out on each individual bag before use mean a damaged bag would not be used."
