Somerset residents who were treated at Royal Cornwall Hospital while visiting Cornwall are being urged to check whether they may have been affected by a doctor's misconduct.

Dr Iuliu Stan worked as a locum in trauma and orthopaedics at the Truro hospital between 2015 and 2020. A Medical Practitioners Tribunal found that he had subjected male patients, including children, to unnecessary intimate procedures for his own sexual gratification, and struck him off the medical register in 2024.

The Royal Cornwall Hospitals NHS Trust says it has admitted negligence in relation to certain procedures, including giving medication rectally, inserting or removing urinary catheters, rectal and testicular examinations, and other examinations or treatment involving the genital area. The Trust says it is sorry for the distress caused and has published information for former patients who may have concerns.

The Trust wrote to patients it identified in 2024, but Coodes Solicitors says people who were visiting Cornwall at the time, or who have since moved, may not have received a letter sent to their former address. Many patients were being treated for unrelated injuries and may not have realised at the time that a procedure was inappropriate.

A compensation scheme run with NHS Resolution closed to new applications on 13 March 2026. The Trust says it will consider later requests to join the scheme on a case-by-case basis, and that a claim through the usual legal process may still be possible. People who think they may have been affected can contact the Trust's legal team at [email protected]. Royal Cornwall Hospitals NHS Trust

Coodes says most claims must be started within three years of a person first learning they may have been harmed, meaning some deadlines could fall as early as January 2027. Different rules apply to people who were under 18 at the time, and the time limit can depend on individual circumstances.

Rachel Pearce, partner and head of personal injury and clinical negligence at Coodes Solicitors, said: "We know there are people out there who were treated by Dr Stan and have no idea they were affected, simply because they were on holiday or have moved away. Nobody should lose the chance of justice because a letter went to the wrong address.

"If you, or your son, were treated at the Royal Cornwall Hospital between 2015 and 2020 and something about that treatment has always bothered you, please get in touch while there is still time. You do not need to have received a letter from the Trust to speak to us."

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Coodes Solicitors, which represents former patients, can be contacted in confidence on 0800 328 3282. The Trust's information says patients do not need a solicitor to ask about joining its scheme.

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