Minister for Health and Children Mary Harney said last night that she only learned of the existence of a review of breast ultrasounds as her officials prepared for Dáil questions. Mark Hennessy, Political Correspondent, reports.
Speaking in Farmleigh last night, Ms Harney said that neither she nor senior Health Service Executive (HSE) management had been told that the review by surgeon Peter Naughton was under way.
"The first time that I became aware that there was a dual process was last night. And I only became aware of the detail when Mr O'Brien [of the HSE] gave that to the [Health and Children] committee. That was the first time that I became aware that 97 women were to be called back for further diagnosis.
"Clearly, I think that there are issues around the communication of this matter," she told journalists.
Giving more information about how the Department of Health became informed, deputy chief medical officer Tony Houlihan said officials had been in touch with the HSE as they prepared parliamentary answers to Dáil questions for the Minister.
"The HSE made some reference to a second review and, on further questioning, we discovered that there was a second process led by Mr Naughton, which they confirmed to us by e-mail yesterday. That was our first knowledge that there was any separate review process. The numbers we heard at the committee for the first time this morning," he said.
Rejecting criticism from Fine Gael TD James Reilly, the Minister said: "My concern has been the women, to make sure that they got speedy diagnosis and the appropriate treatment. I recognise that they did not get the appropriate diagnosis in the first instance. I am advised - and I am not a clinician - that what we are dealing with here are low-risk patients, and the HSE is anxious to ensure that no stone is left unturned.
"I have to accept that advice but that is not to say that we won't find other cancers," said the Minister, following a meeting with 20 breast cancer surgeons and the new head of Irish cancer services, Prof Tom Keane.
Asked if she feared a Dáil motion of no confidence, she said: "If there is a motion of no confidence, I'll deal with that, but I don't want to confuse political accusations. This issue matters a lot to me, breast cancer."
Insisting she had volunteered all the information she had during Dáil appearances, the Minister said: "When I told the Dáil [on Wednesday] that the O'Doherty review had been completed and that there were nine cases of cancer, that was my information.
"Clearly, if I had other information I would have made that available to the Dáil."
She acknowledged that every woman given a breast ultrasound in the Midland General Hospital would now be worried they are among the 97 who will have to go for further surgical checks.
"I hope that they can be telephoned and that they are not there waiting for the post to arrive because, clearly, there are many women who had an ultrasound who are not going to be called back and who will be worried."
Asked if the HSE must take the blame for the latest chapter in the controversy surrounding breast cancer services in the Portlaoise hospital, she said: "I don't think entering into a blame game is productive. I totally support the HSE in the implementation of the reforms."
But she went on: "I don't think that anybody could be satisfied that the Minister for Health and the Department of Health were not aware that there was a dual process under way.
"There are issues that arise in this matter for Prof Drumm . . . but there might be wider issues that the board of the HSE need to address."