Consultant believed dispute over female changing room 'was hate incident'

A consultant who helped fill in a report following a dispute between nurse Sandie Peggie and transgender doctor Beth Upton said she "believed it was a hate incident" and considered getting police involved, a tribunal has heard.

Ms Peggie was suspended after she objected to having to share a female changing room with Dr Upton at Victoria Hospital in Kirkcaldy on Christmas Eve 2023. She was placed on special leave after the doctor made an allegation of bullying and harassment and cited concerns about "patient care".

Ms Peggie has lodged a claim against NHS Fife and Dr Upton, citing the Equality Act 2010, including sexual harassment, harassment related to a protected belief, indirect discrimination and victimisation. On Tuesday, Dr Kate Searle, a consultant in emergency medicine, told the tribunal that Dr Upton was "very open" about their trans status during a job interview, and had been out for around a year in August 2023.

Dr Searle said that she had known Ms Peggie during her 11-year career at NHS Fife but was unaware of her gender critical views. She said she had asked Dr Upton "if she was happy using female changing rooms" in August 2023 during an induction and "didn't make any other suggestions".

Dr Searle said she emailed equality lead Isla Bumba on 8 December 2023 to ask if NHS Fife had a policy to support transgender staff but was told it did not. On her return to work on 29 December 2023, Dr Searle read an email from Dr Elspeth Pitt regarding an "upsetting interaction with another member of staff" and an email from Dr Upton from Christmas Day, alleging Ms Peggie had told her "she can't be in the female changing room, it's wrong and lots of others feel this way" and "she continued to tell me she is intimidated, she told me women have a right to feel safe.