The fallout from the Bristol heart surgery case, which ended last week with findings of serious professional misconduct against three doctors, continued this week when six consultants from Bristol Royal Infirmary hit back at suggestions that “doctors at Bristol” were to blame for the tragedy.

The consultants' statement came in response to comments from the Department of Health, the Royal College of Surgeons, and senior NHS local managers blaming Bristol doctors for failure to act over high death rates in paediatric cardiac surgery.

A former senior surgeon and medical director at Bristol, James Wisheart, was struck off the medical register by the General Medical Council last week; also struck off was Dr John Roylance, former chief executive of United Bristol Healthcare Trust. A second surgeon, Janardan Dhasmana, was also found guilty of serious professional misconduct but was allowed to remain on the register subject to a three year ban on …