Gosport War Memorial Hospital police probe examining 15,000 death certificates
An inquiry found 456 patients had their lives shortened after they were prescribed powerful painkillers "without medical justification".
Police investigating the deaths of patients at Gosport War Memorial Hospital are examining 15,000 death certificates as part of the probe.
An independent police investigation was launched into the Hampshire hospital after a probe found that hundreds of patients had their lives shortened through the use of opioids.
The Kent and Essex Serious Crime Directorate, which is managing the investigation, codenamed Operation Magenta, have confirmed that officers are reviewing millions of pages of documents including 15,000 death certificates and 700 patient records.
Deputy Assistant Commissioner Neil Jerome said: "The independent police investigation into hundreds of deaths at Gosport War Memorial Hospital, Hampshire, between 1987 and 2001, is one of the largest and most complex of its nature in the history of UK policing.
"The size of the Operation Magenta team, which consists of both serving and retired detectives from a number of police forces across the country, in addition to other members of police staff, has been increasing steadily since the investigation was launched in April 2019 and will soon total around 150 people.
"Having such a large and experienced team enables us to progress at pace with the investigation, which currently involves the review of millions of pages of documents including more than 700 patient records, around 15,000 death certificates and a significant quantity of other seized materials.
"We have so far taken at least one statement from every family currently engaged with the investigation and this work will continue when it is safe to do so and in line with the national Covid-19 restrictions.
"We are also now contacting other non-family witnesses during the relevant time period, for the purposes of them also giving statements to aid the investigation.
"We are continuing to keep the families updated and remain committed to carrying out a full and thorough investigation.''
Relatives of some of those who died at the hospital have campaigned for prosecutions to be brought over the deaths, and last month called for a Hillsborough-model inquest.
More than 450 people had their lives shortened at the hospital while another 200 were "probably'' similarly given opioids between 1989 and 2000 without medical justification, according to the Gosport Independent Panel report released in 2018.
The report said there was "a disregard for human life and a culture of shortening lives of a large number of patients'' at the hospital.
The report said there was an "institutionalised regime of prescribing and administering 'dangerous doses' of a hazardous combination of medication not clinically indicated or justified''.
The inquiry, led by the former bishop of Liverpool James Jones, did not ascribe criminal or civil liability for the deaths.
The families say repeated ineffective investigations into hundreds of deaths at the hospital have left families without any justice or closure and have called for a new judge and jury inquest to be held rather than it be conducted by a coroner.