Minister for Health Jennifer Carroll MacNeill and Tánaiste Simon Harris have agreed to bring a recommendation to Cabinet to establish a statutory public inquiry into spinal care for children with scoliosis and spina bifida.
The Fine Gael politicians met advocacy groups and the parents of the late Harvey Morrison Sherratt on Wednesday evening.
Harvey, who had scoliosis and other health issues, died aged nine in July after waiting a number of years for surgery.
Speaking after the two-hour meeting, the advocacy groups in a joint statement said “in principle it will be a tribunal of inquiry”.
RM Block
“A facilitator/mediator will be put in place to ensure the terms of reference are acceptable to the scoliosis advocacy group and the spina bifida hydrocephalus paediatric advocacy group,” they said.
“This will ensure that the child’s and parents’ voice remain central throughout the process.”
The groups said they were “hopeful” this inquiry “will mean there is true and substantial change going forward, so that no child will ever be failed in the same manner Harvey was”.
Harvey’s mother, Gillian Sherratt, said they were “feeling quite positive” after the meeting.
Úna Keightley, of the Spina Bifida advocacy group, said they have “waited a decade for this inquiry to happen”.
“Now that we have something on the table, we want to ensure it is exactly the facility and the correct methodology to ensure there is justice and accountability for our children,” she said.
After Wednesday’s meeting, Ms Carroll MacNeill said the meeting was “collaborative and constructive”.
“It is the intention to bring a memo to Government recommending a statutory public model of inquiry,” she said in a statement.
“A considerable body of work will be required and a facilitator will be appointed to scope the content of potential terms of reference in collaboration with stakeholders.”
Ms Carroll MacNeill and Mr Harris thanked the families for their time and engagement on the topic.
[ Harvey Morrison Sherratt’s mother says report alleging mistaken palliative label is ‘huge shock’ ]
Separately, Micheál Martin told the Dáil that he, Mr Harris and Ms Carroll MacNeill were not aware of the whistleblower report about Harvey’s removal from a scoliosis surgery waiting list.
Sinn Féin leader Mary Lou McDonald said the protected disclosure arrived on the Minister’s desk on August 31st and arrived at the HSE on September 12th. “There is nothing legally to prohibit the Minister or anybody else in receipt to study and to absorb that protected disclosure,” she said.
The Taoiseach said the “allegations you have outlined are very serious and do warrant investigation. There is clear legislation outlining how protective disclosures are dealt with”.
But he warned against “conflating” issues and insisted the Minister did not see the disclosure.
Mr Martin told Ms McDonald the protected disclosure was received in “a secure, dedicated mailbox” on August 31st.
There are separate channels for whistleblower reports, he said. He said that “the Minister does not engage with that. The legislation is very clear on that”.
The commissioner for protected disclosures “independently determines the appropriate prescribed person or public body to follow up on the disclosure”, Mr Martin said.
Ms McDonald highlighted the case of the nine-year-old boy, who was “deliberately removed” from the waiting list for spinal surgery because it was believed he was in palliative care.
Ms McDonald said Harvey’s parents, Gillian and Stephen, “got only spin, only lies and only deception” about why he was removed from a scoliosis surgery waiting list when an independent expert had deemed him suitable. It was only when a whistleblower came forward that the reason was revealed.
Speaking in the Dáil, Ms McDonald said it was “widely known that Harvey was deliberately moved from the waiting list despite being fit for surgery. His parents didn’t know, though. Nobody told them. They were left in the dark despite their pleas and protestation, despite meeting with the Tánaiste and the Minister for Health.
“They found out in a Sunday newspaper why Harvey was removed from the list. How can they or any other parent now have any trust in you or anybody else entrusted with the care and treatment of their children?
“Harvey was wrongly and deliberately removed from the list. Did this happen to other children?”
Mr Martin said it was an enormous trauma for any parents to go through, but Harvey’s family’s experience was “even more traumatic” and this was “unacceptable”.
He fully understood “the serious distress to the family, who have been wanting to know for some time why Harvey was removed from the waiting list without any notice or discussion”.
Mr Martin told Ms McDonald: “You’ve made a point that he was deliberately removed. I don’t know the circumstances. I don’t know why would someone be motivated to deliberately remove the child without telling the parents. That, to me, is something that I can’t comprehend and that does need to be the subject matter of an inquiry.”
