The Hermitage Medical Clinic has apologised at the High Court over failures in the care provided to a woman who died from sepsis after developing a rare infection following a hernia operation at the clinic.
The apology was read as part of a €300,000 settlement made to the family of 52-year-old Susan McGee, who died 11 days after the hernia operation.
Ms McGee, a mother of two, Skerries Road, Rush, Co Dublin, died in hospital on July 24th, 2013, having developed a rare Clostridium difficile infection affecting almost her entire bowel following the hernia operation 11 days earlier at The Hermitage Medical Clinic.
A verdict of medical misadventure was returned at the inquest into the death of Ms McGee.
In a statement read outside court after the settlement, Ms McGee’s daughter Melissa Barry said the death of her mother had a catastrophic effect on the family and their world had never been the same since.
“Our mother is missed every day by her entire family and a large circle of friends. We owed it to our amazing mam to seek answers and justice. We hope she can now rest in peace while we can rebuild the rest of our lives.”
The apology and admission were welcome but had arrived “five years too late”, she said.
“The Hermitage Medical Clinic has reassured us new procedures are in place for the handover of patients and we hope lessons have been learned. Patients need to be assured that details of their medical condition and care plan are properly communicated if they are being put in to the hands of a different medical professional. Hospital staff must also listen to and act on the concerns of a patient’s family.”
A statement issued on behalf of the McGee family by their solicitor Dermot McNamara said today’s outcome brought “little consolation” to them. “It has taken five years to bring this case to the point where the defendants had no alternative but to admit responsibility and apologise for the failure in medical treatment that caused the death of Susan McGee.
“Until recently, the defendants denied any responsibility – leading the family to question whether the policy of open disclosure is actually practised by the medical profession.
“The McGee family remain convinced that Susan would be alive and with them today if there had been a proper handover of her care when her consultant went on holiday in July 2013.
“The family feel strongly that there should be clear fail-safe handover protocols in place in every hospital to ensure proper continuity of patient care.”
Ms Barry, Grange Rise, Stamullen, Co Meath and her brother John McGee, Bretton Woods, Skerries Road, Rush, had sued the Hermitage Medical Clinic, Old Lucan Road, Dublin, and consultant surgeons, Arnold Hill and Colm Power, who practised at the Hermitage Clinic, over the circumstances of their mother’s care when she attended there in 2013.
It was claimed there was a failure to respond adequately or at all to the deterioration in the condition of Ms McGee when she was readmitted to The Hermitage Medical Clinic over the weekend of July 19th-21st, 2013, days after the original hernia operation.
It was claimed her care had been delegated to two surgeons without clearly delineating appropriate reporting structures and ensuring one doctor would be in receipt of all relevant information.
Liability was admitted in the case.
‘Lessons learned’
The apology said The Hermitage Medical Clinic together with Prof Hill and Mr Power extend their sincerest condolences and apologies to Ms McGee’s family arising out of her death and “for the failures in her care”.
It added: “We have put in place additional measures to address the lessons learned from our review of her care.”
Simon Mills SC, for the family, said Ms McGee was admitted to the clinic on July 13th, 2013, and had a hernia operation. During the surgery she suffered a tear to the bowel which was a non-negligent act and antibiotics were prescribed, counsel said.
She was discharged on July 16th but readmitted the next day as she was unwell, he said. Prof Hill went on a planned vacation on July 19th for which there was no criticism offered and Ms McGee was left in the care of Mr Power and another doctor, he said.
Mr Mills said the third doctor was not available as he was rostered to work in another hospital.
Ms McGee’s condition deteriorated and she was not seen by a doctor of consultant status at any time between Friday, July 19th, and the morning of Monday, July 22nd, 2013. She deteriorated very significantly and, while she had emergency treatment when assessed on July 22nd, died two days later.
Approving the settlement, Mr Justice Robert Eagar sympathised with the family on their loss.