Oxford medic accused of catalogue of inappropriate behaviour

Consultant James Gilbert is said to have sexually harassed female colleagues, made racist comments and abused his senior position on various dates between 2009 and 2022.

He is also said by the General Medical Council (GMC) to have acted in an intimidating manner towards several junior female employees by telling them he could affect their career prospects.

One of his alleged victims, Ms A, told the Medical Practitioners Tribunal Service (MPTS) hearing that she was “scared” of Mr Gilbert during her employment at the Oxford Transplant Centre, part of Oxford University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust.

READ MORE: Banbury man found guilty of baseball-bat murder

She said that on a number of occasions when she was a trainee he grabbed her waist from behind in an isolated corridor and then ran his hands up and down her body, from her hips to bra line.

Mr Gilbert took the opportunity whenever he could to grab her alone in the corridor, she said, and had told her: “The world of transplant surgery is small.”

She said there were “very few” women working in transplant surgery at the time and she had “everything to lose” if she complained about the consultant to the deanery who had responsibility for trainees.

She cited a recent academic paper which revealed that 63 per cent of female surgeons said they had been sexually harassed in the workplace and only 14 per cent said they had reported it.

Ms A told the tribunal: “This is exactly the problem with sexual harassment in surgery. That’s because it is often intimidating and terrifying to do so because of the professional consequences to your career.”

During the same period it is alleged Mr Gilbert rang her late in the evening and told her he was instrumental in national selection and was able to affect her career prospects.

He implied he could do the same to her if she “became a problem”, the tribunal heard.

Giving evidence, Ms A said: “This was all pre-Me Too. It was a very much male-dominated culture and society.

“I didn’t feel I had a safe conduit to voice my concerns during the framework of my training. I didn’t because I knew I would painted as a problem.”

She said that on one occasion Mr Gilbert discussed a junior colleague, Ms C, with her and told her: “Just because she looks good in tight clothes, it doesn’t mean she’s any good.”

Years later he is said to have remarked to Ms A, “You’re a well put together girl. You must always wear matching underwear, correct?” and “I enjoyed watching you walk around in your f*** me boots yesterday. You must love the attention you get in that sexy leather jacket”, the tribunal was told.

Mark Sutton KC, representing Mr Gilbert, said: ” I suggest to you that that comment was not made to you?”

Ms A replied: “I disagree, it was. It is not something you forget. I didn’t escalate it because we all knew what happened to a previous person in the department. It was common knowledge They would just be punished.”

Mr Sutton said: “I suggest the notion of you being punished for raising concerns is wholly illusory.”

Ms A said: “I had seen what had happened to other people. He had told me that when he saw someone he perceived as a problem trainee he knew how to sort them out.”

Racist comments were also said to have made by Mr Gilbert, according to the GMC, including: “You know how Africans clean themselves once they’ve gone to the toilet? They just use their hands. No wonder they always get infections.”

Ms A said the remark to another senior colleague was made in front of her as she told the tribunal: “As far as I knew, nothing happened. It reinforced what we thought – that he could say and do what he wanted, so I didn’t think there was any point in challenging it.

“If you said anything there would only be consequences for you.”

Ms A said she was “horrified” when she said Mr Gilbert also remarked: “I know these Africans. They are only interested in a good time, they only come out after the sun goes down.”

READ MORE: Pink BMW seized by police for no insurance

She said: “I was so upset I felt I had to say something. This was against all my instincts because we were all so scared of him. He controlled everything we did.

"He was a wolf in charge of sheep. What do you do when you are one of the sheep? You try to keep on his good side.

“I told my educational supervisor and the response I got was ‘everybody knows he is a racist bugger.’ I reported it to the person I trusted and that is the response I got.”

She said she later felt “violated” when she said Mr Gilbert traced his finger up her arm and to her neck and “kept it there for several seconds”.

Ms A said: “He was so brazen at doing it. He was doing it in front of someone else. That’s how invincible he felt.”

Mr Gilbert denies any inappropiate behaviour towards colleagues.