Findings of report on misdiagnosis of cancer accepted by Government

THE GOVERNMENT accepts all 15 recommendations in the report on the investigation into the circumstances surrounding the care of breast cancer patient Rebecca O'Malley, Taoiseach Bertie Ahern has told the Dáil.

He also said the Medical Council, the regulatory body for the profession, would also fully examine the report of the independent review of Barringtons' Hospital. The report confirmed that two women had had their cancer diagnoses delayed, but the review process did not identify any other women who had a missed or delayed diagnosis.

Mr Ahern said the main finding of the report on the case of Rebecca O'Malley by the Health Information and Quality Authority (HIQA) was that "the interpretive error made by a consultant pathologist that led to the initial misdiagnosis was a single mistake of human error". He added that the report notes the absence of triple assessment review and the missed opportunities to correct the error.

It also criticised the Health Service Executive (HSE) and Mr Ahern said the report made 15 recommendations for the executive. "Obviously it is for the HSE to make sure they are implemented," he said but the Government accepted the recommendations.

He was responding to Labour leader Eamon Gilmore who had raised the issue of cancer misdiagnosis, and asked if he could ensure as Ms O'Malley had said, that "Russian roulette is no longer played with patients' safety".

The 15 recommendations included matters relating to clinical practice and management, said Mr Ahern, who also said that the Barringtons' Hospital review found the care of the 118 cases "did not meet the standards which would have been acceptable at their time of treatment".

He said Minister for Health Mary Harney "anticipates that the Medical Council, the regulatory body for the profession, will fully examine the findings of this report".

The complex matter of extending monitoring and control to the private sector had been referred to the Commission on Patient Safety and Quality Assurance, he said.

Earlier Mr Gilmore paid tribute to the Taoiseach . He said he appreciated how difficult the decision had been personally for Mr Ahern.

His resignation "is a course of action I have been advocating to him for some time. In doing so I have always acknowledged the contribution he has made to the political life of this country.

"In particular I again acknowledge and pay tribute to the enormous personal and political effort he made to bring about a settlement in Northern Ireland.

"I wish him well personally. I hope he accepts that the political duty I have had to perform was done on a political basis and not on a personal basis."