Another doctor faces allegations of negligence

A consultant obstetrician at the same hospital as Dr Michael Neary is also facing allegations of medical negligence over the treatment of several women.

The first of a number of High Court civil actions against Dr Finnian Lynch of Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital, Drogheda, is due to come before the court later this year.

The case involves a woman who claims the doctor acted negligently in a series of operations which resulted in her losing her womb and her ovaries. She had major vaginal repairs carried out in another hospital subsequently.

Dr Lynch, who denies wrongdoing, is contesting the allegations.

The development comes just weeks after Dr Neary was struck off the medical register for professional misconduct over the removal of wombs from 10 patients.

Dr Neary is facing at least 65 legal actions from women who claim he performed unnecessary Caesarean hysterectomies on them over a 20-year-period up to 1998.

Patient Focus, a support group for patients, says that around 100 women claim to have been the subject of mistreatment or malpractice at Our Lady of Lourdes.

The North Eastern Health Board announced earlier this week that it had commissioned an external review of the care of a "small number" of women who had complained of their treatment in the obstetrical unit of the hospital.

A spokesman for the health board declined to comment on which doctors or medical staff were linked to the cases.

Dr Lynch, who is still working at Our Lady of Lourdes, was unavailable for comment yesterday.

The cases in question were reviewed by Dr Roger Clements, a consultant obstetrician based in Britain. The health board's management has sought the advice of external risk advisers on the reports by Dr Clements. They are expected to report soon.

The first legal action against Dr Lynch is being taken by Ms Geraldine Devlin. She is also taking legal action against Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital. The case is expected to be heard towards the end of this year.

This case is handled by MacGeehin & Toale Solicitors. The firm is also handling around 30 cases relating to alleged malpractice by Dr Neary. Many of these cases are due to be heard before the High Court in the coming months.

The disclosure of further allegations of negligence, as yet unproven, in addition to the allegations against Dr Neary, are likely to add weight to calls by the support group, Patient Focus, for an inquiry into care at the Drogheda hospital.

A spokeswoman for the group, Ms Sheila O'Connor, said a public inquiry was needed to examine all the issues relating to the allegations. The group is due to meet the Minister for Health, Mr Martin, next month.

In a separate development, unrelated to the High Court civil actions, former patients at the hospital say there are wider issues of care which need to be examined by a separate inquiry.

Evidence has emerged this year that more "barbaric" obstetric operations, known as a symphysiotomies, were carried out in Our Lady of Lourdes than any other hospital between 1950 and 1983.

The procedure was carried out as a Caesarean section and involved the permanent widening of the pelvis.

A support group of women who underwent symphysiotomies, known as Survivors of Symphysiotomies (SOS), has obtained figures which show that 348 of the operations were carried out in Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital in Drogheda between 1950 and 1983.

Several hundred such procedures were also carried out at maternity hospitals in Dublin, according to official figures.

The SOS group is due to meet Mr Martin shortly but he has ruled out a large-scale inquiry.