The family of a woman who died after a hospital missed an early opportunity to diagnose her with cervical cancer has settled a protracted legal battle over her death.
Outside the Four Courts on Wednesday, Kevin Fitzpatrick, bereaved husband of Maria Fitzpatrick, said the loss of his wife left a profound absence and “raised painful questions about the responsibility for safety and duty of care owed to every patient”.
“People should not have to battle like this,” he said.
He added: “The long delays, the unanswered questions and the slow progress towards justice only deepened our grief. We had a long battle and this should not happen. They didn’t break us.”
RM Block
A mother of four, Ms Fitzpatrick, from Collinstown, Co Westmeath, was 38 when she died of complications due to cervical cancer in 2009.
In the High Court, Portiuncula University Hospital, which tested two of Ms Fitzpatrick’s smear tests in 2004 and 2005, acknowledged there was a missed opportunity to diagnose her cancer at an earlier stage.
In a letter read to the court following settlement of the Fitzpatrick family’s action against the HSE, James Keane, the hospital’s general manager, expressed sincere condolences on the death of Ms Fitzpatrick.
On behalf of the hospital, he said: “The hospital acknowledges that there was a missed opportunity to diagnose Maria’s cancer at an earlier stage which ultimately led to her death. We are sorry this occurred. We understand that this statement cannot change or negate your loss but we wish to convey our deepest sympathy to you and your family.”
Liam Reidy SC, counsel for the Fitzpatrick family, instructed by Callan Tansey Solicitors, told the court the two smears had been misreported. If they had been correctly reported, he added, Ms Fitzpatrick would have got treatment for early stage cancer and would be alive today.
Mr Fitzpatrick told Mr Justice Paul Coffey his son Darren, who was 10 when his mother died, could not cope afterwards. Darren took his own life days before the ninth anniversary of his mother’s death.
Mr Fitzpatrick said he hoped the settlement of the action, which he initiated after the publicity surrounding the Vicky Phelan case, would bring some form of closure.
“An apology is only words, it doesn’t bring back the life, love and a mother to her children,” he told the judge.
Mr Fitzpatrick, of Gillardstown, Collinstown, Co Westmeath, had sued the HSE over the death of his wife.
A smear sample examined at Portiuncula Hospital in September 2004 was described as difficult to assess when, it was claimed, it was an adequate sample that could be assessed.
It was further claimed there was an alleged failure to spend sufficient time reviewing the smear sample and an alleged failure to have regard to the fact that the smear sample contained many groups of abnormal cells.
It was also claimed there was a failure in relation to the 2005 test to advise that the report was limited by the absence of endocervical component. Ms Fitzpatrick’s death, it was claimed, had been hastened.
Noting the settlement and the division of the statutory mental distress payment of €35,000, Mr Justice Coffey said it was a sad and tragic case. He extended his heartfelt sympathy to Mr Fitzpatrick and his family on their double tragedy.
Outside court, Mr Fitzpatrick, flanked by extended family, said they we were forced to pursue a legal route for accountability.
“We carry Maria and Darren’s memory forward by continuing to stand for truth for safe medical practice and for systems that ensure preventable tragedies are not repeated,” he said.
“It is our fervent wish that no other family is forced to pursue the same legal route that we have endured, that lessons will be learned and the powers-that-be ensure that the need for transparency improves standards of care and timely accountability.”
He added: “Accountability in healthcare matters, because families depend on trust and when the trust is broken, the consequences are life-changing.”
