The Health Information and Quality Authority (HIQA) has today published the terms of reference for its independent investigation into the quality and safety of patient care at the Mid Western Regional Hospital, Ennis.
Minister for Health Mary Harney ordered an independent review of services at the hospital on September 24th following the deaths of two women who received a late diagnosis of breast cancer.
The chief executive of the Health Service Executive (HSE), Prof Brendan Drumm, has since warned that other cases of misdiagnosis at the hospital may come to light.
The HIQA said today its investigation will seek to establish if safe, quality services are in place at the hospital. It added that if risks to patients are identified, recommendations will be made to address them.
Following confirmation that another woman in the Midwest was also misdiagnosed, the HIQA said that national recommendations on wider service improvements will also be made where appropriate.
On Saturday, the Minister for Health confirmed that a cervical smear taken from a woman in 2006 and sent to the laboratory at University College Hospital in Galway for analysis had been incorrectly interpreted. The woman is now seriously ill with cancer.
Speaking today, Dr Tracey Cooper, chief executive of the HIQA, said "The investigation team will review the arrangements for providing safe, quality clinical care which will include how the hospital focuses on the needs of patients, the management and leadership at the hospital.
"The investigation team will also review the systems and processes that support safety and quality and the communication between staff and patients, particularly when patient safety incidents occur and when complaints are made."
Dr Cooper said that as part of the investigation, the experiences of patients and their families will be taken into account.
The investigation is to be conducted by a team appointed and authorised by the HIQA in accordance with the Health Act 2007. The membership of the investigation team is being finalised and will be published when concluded.
The HIQA said it would make no further comment until the investigation has finished.
The families of the late Anne Moriarty and Edel Kelly, the two women who were at the centre of the breast cancer misdiagnosis cases at Ennis General Hospital, have welcomed the independent review of services.
"I am sure that HIQA will undertake a thorough and robust investigation and that at the end of it we will be provided with recommendations that will lead to a better quality of care and improved patient safety at Ennis hospital," said Anne Moriaty's husband Karl Henry this afternoon.
"I expect that many of the lessons learnt will also be applicable to other hospitals across the country.
The Terms of Reference don't make specific mention of my wife, Ann Moriarty. However, I know that I will have the opportunity to input into the investigation and I expect that the final report will provide me with the much needed answers to the many questions I have relating to her care, and how my complaints were dealt with within the HSE at local and corporate level," he added.
