A DOCTOR who lied to investigators after the tragic death of a baby boy has been suspended for 12 months.

Dr Olufemi Dina, who trained in Nigeria, was working as a locum at Royal Blackburn Hospital in September 2010 when he was involved in the delivery of twins, one of whom later died from complications arising from the birth.

An inquest ruled the boy’s death was ‘accidental’, but a Lancashire Telegraph article about the case alerted regulators that Dr Dina may have been breaching conditions on his registration at the time.

Due to past misconduct he was subject to various restrictions, including a requirement to inform his professional body of any hospital work he accepted.

But the Medical Practitioners Tribunal Service (MPTS) found Dr Dina had breached the conditions by failing to inform the General Medical Council (GMC) of his posting at Blackburn, failing to arrange necessary supervision from senior staff, and failing to present bosses with an official assessment of his performance.

The agency doctor initially claimed he made an honest mistake in failing to inform the GMC, but later admitted lying about his efforts to post a letter to the regulator, saying he feared his career would otherwise be over.

Dr Dina, who now works at Doncaster Royal Infirmary, worked at the Royal Blackburn over a ten-day period, when Arron Almond’s head became stuck for 20 minutes during a breech delivery in the early hours of September 24.

And although the tribunal did not criticise Dr Dina for his clinical handling of the birth, Arron’s dad Neil Almond felt the tribunal ruling had brought ‘a little bit of justice’.

The 36-year-old, of Sough Road, Darwen, said: “We are content but I wouldn’t say we’re happy. He has lied and he has lied, it’s just been embarrassing.

“We would like to sit down with the hospital now, with the people who employed him. They knew about the conditions and they took a chance on him.”

The Manchester-based tribunal panel said bosses at the Royal Blackburn were aware of the conditions on Dr Dina’s registration and had ‘some responsibility’ to ensure he was under the appropriate supervision during his posting.

Dr Dina’s suspension will start in four weeks and his fitness to practise will be reviewed before he can return to work next year.

He had previously been sanctioned in 2008 for falsifying medical records, a lack of communication skills and time management while working at St Mary’s Hospital for Women and Children, in Manchester.