A Trust neurosurgeon has been found guilty of nine sexual assaults against patients at two Birmingham hospitals.

Nafees Hamid, 51, assaulted six women between May 2009 and June 2013 at the Queen Elizabeth and Priory hospitals.

The jury at Birmingham Crown Court acquitted Hamid of six further counts of sexual assault.

Dame Julie Moore, Chief Executive, University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust said: “It is difficult to describe how sickened I and my colleagues are by Nafees Hamid’s crimes – that someone in a position of trust and authority has abused such privilege for his own gratification.

“Our most sincere apologies go out to the patients who were victims of NH’s actions and their families who are undoubtedly affected too.

“We are deeply sorry that these offences occurred and that NH has brought disrepute to his profession. The trust that exists between a doctor and his patients is sacred and that it has been breached in this way is despicable.

“Our thoughts and ongoing support are with the victims and families affected by these actions.

“That NH continued to maintain his innocence and caused his victims to endure a distressing and lengthy criminal case is wholly unacceptable. We would like to thank those patients who bravely came forward and supported the police in their investigation to ensure justice was done.

“Now that the criminal proceedings are concluded, the Trust will resume and complete its own investigation without further delay.”

The Trust has already taken action on lessons learned throughout this process.

During the investigation it was revealed that an email was received by the Trust’s Patient Advice and Liaison Service (PALS) on 13 May 2009 from a patient, complaining of "inappropriate behaviour" by NH during an outpatient appointment.

The Trust’s Executive Team was not aware of this email until it was disclosed by the complainant when she came forward following the letters to NH’s patients sent in November 2013.

At this stage the way in which the complaint was processed was investigated by the Trust and it was established that the individual who dealt with the complaint had resolved it by seeking an explanation from NH and conveying this to the patient. The patient stated that she was satisfied with the response and said she did not wish to pursue an official complaint.

The policy and guidance in place at the time stated that a complaint of this nature should have been escalated and investigated according to Trust procedure rather than being dealt with at source. The member of staff who dealt with this complaint no longer works at the Trust. On disclosure of the email, the policies and procedures were reinforced and reiterated to current staff.

The Trust accepts that by not following proper procedures in dealing with the 2009 complaint, an opportunity was potentially missed to prevent the subsequent offences that occurred. For this, we offer an unreserved apology to NH’s victims.

If you have been affected by this court case and would like support, please email confidential@uhb.nhs.uk.