Doctor Involved in Child's Death Wants Compensation...

The doctor who was sacked after failing to spot Baby P’s broken back is suing for unfair dismissal.

Paediatric consultant Dr Sabah Al-Zayyat could be awarded up to £66,200 of taxpayers’ money if she wins her case.

Last year she told the Old Bailey that she was unable to conduct a full medical examination of the 17-month-old because he was ‘ miserable and cranky’.

She says she was made a scapegoat in the scandal of Baby P ,In fact the toddler was in crippling pain with a snapped spine and eight fractured ribs – the victim of horrendous abuse by his mother, her boyfriend and their lodger.

He died 48 hours later on August 3, 2007, at his home in Haringey, North London. A post-mortem examination revealed more than 50 dreadful injuries.

Saudi-born Dr Al-Zayyat, 53, was the last medic to see the toddler alive and was the first person to be sacked in the wake of the scandal when she was dismissed in May 2008.

She was also suspended from practising by the General Medical Council last November.

Last night Lynne Featherstone, the constituency MP, said: ‘How anyone who failed to see a broken back or broken ribs is planning to sue for anything is beyond me.

Scandal: St Ann's Hospital in Tottenham, where Baby P was brought two days before his death, was criticised for not employing enough consultants

‘The doctor has the right to appeal. But if she is successful it gives out a bad message – that doctors can make such huge mistakes and get away with them.’

The married paediatrician, who lives in Ilford, Essex, was employed on a rolling six-month contract earning more than £75,000 a year.

She is expected to claim that she was not fully aware of Peter’s medical history. \

She will also claim she was placed under pressure because of a chronic shortage of staff at St Ann’s Hospital in Tottenham, which is run by the Great Ormond Street Hospital NHS Trust,
Lawyers will also argue that she is a scapegoat for wider failings in the child’s care.

Peter suffered his injuries during an eight-month period in which he was seen 60 times by social and health workers, but he still did not pass the threshold to be taken into care.

Earlier this year Peter’s 27-year-old mother, her sadistic boyfriend, 32, and their lodger Jason Owens were jailed for causing or allowing the boy’s death.

Great Ormond Street said it would fight Dr Al-Zayyat’s action.

A spokesman said: ‘Even a junior doctor should have recognised the risks in a situation where there was a letter on file clearly stating that there were child protection concerns, and the child had visible bruises.

‘It is also basic training to strip a child to carry out a full investigation. Two serious case reviews have questioned her practice.’

An employment tribunal is expected to take place early next year.