Tag Archives: Vicky Phelan

RTÉ Radio One’s Ray D’Arcy Show yesterday

Yesterday.

On RTÉ’s Ray D’Arcy Show.

Mr D’Arcy spoke with Limerick mum-of-two Vicky Phelan, who has terminal cancer; Cork dad-of-two Stephen Teap, whose wife Irene died last year of cervical cancer, and Lorraine Walsh, from Galway, who cannot conceive due to having had cervical cancer.

The comprehensive hour-long interview with Mr D’Arcy followed the publication of Dr Gabriel Scally’s report into the CervicalCheck screening programme.

In the opening paragraph of his report’s foreword, Dr Scally wrote:

“This major crisis emerged into the public domain because of a failed attempt to disclose the results of a retrospective audit to a large group of women who had, unfortunately, developed cervical cancer. In particular, it emerged because of the extraordinary determination of Vicky Phelan not [to] be silenced. But there are many indications that this was a system that was doomed to fail at some point. “

Yet, at one point, Mr D’Arcy put it to Ms Phelan that she had found herself being criticised over the past few months.

Most notably, on August 1, Ms Phelan tweeted to say she was taking a break from Twitter and commenting publicly on the scandal, while mentioning that some people had been “condemning” her for “bringing down the cervical screening programme”.

Three weeks later, on August 21, Eilish O’Regan, in the Irish Independent, reported that there had been no fall-off in the number of women going for smear tests with CervicalCheck – despite the controversy.

Ms Phelan has repeatedly encouraged women to continue to get smear tests via CervicalCheck in all her interviews.

From yesterday’s discussion…

Ray D’Arcy: “I find it hard to believe, Vicky Phelan, but you have your critics. People are…”

Vicky Phelan: “Oh I’ve, by god, I do.”

D’Arcy: “And what are they saying?”

Phelan: “They’re not, you see, they’re clever enough in that they’re not explicitly saying, you know, mentioning me but, you know, it’s kind of going around about the house, saying that ‘all of these women’, you know with, ‘their obscene payouts’ will, you know, ‘bring down this screening programme’ and ‘screening saves lives’. But sure I’ve never said anything but, I’ve always said screening saves lives.”

“All I’ve ever said and I’ve never changed, and I’ve never wavered was that I had an issue with the way CervicalCheck was run. And I am vindicated today.”

D’Arcy: “Completely vindicated.”

Stephen Teap: “100% you are, yeah.”

Phelan: “Thank god, is all I can say. So I hope some people will eat humble pie I can tell you.”

D’Arcy: “They should read the report and come back to you.”

Via RTE Radio One

Previously: Cruel Summer

Limerick mum-of-two Vicky Phelan, who settled her case against Clinical Pathology Laboratories in Austin, Texas on April 25, and a tweet from July 31 

On July 31 last, terminally ill Limerick mum-of-two Vicky Phelan tweeted that she was taking a break from campaigning about the CervicalCheck scandal.

In a series of tweets, she said she was “deeply disturbed by the lack of empathy in some quarters towards the women and families affected by the scandal”.

She also mentioned that some people had been condemning her for apparently “bringing down the cervical screening programme”.

Further to this…

Eilish O’Regan, in the Irish Independent, reports:

“The number of women availing of routine cervical screening offered by CervicalCheck has remained steady – and even increased in certain instances – despite concerns that publicity about the scandal would turn women away from the free tests, new figures reveal.

“The take-up of routine BreastCheck appointments by women who can avail of a free mammogram every two years has also not fallen.

“Figures obtained by the Irish Independent for CervicalCheck, which has a target coverage rate of 80pc of eligible women, show that up to the end of May it was at 79.8pc.”

No fall-off in women availing of cancer screening amid scandal (Irish Independent)

Related: Phelan’s crusade must now fix system (Justine McCarthy, The Sunday Times, August 5, 2018)

Previously: Cruel Summer

Rollingnews

Vicky Phelan outside Government Buildings this afternoon ahead of a meeting with Taoiseach Leo Varadkar

Last night.

Limerick mum-of-two Vicky Phelan announced she’s taking a break from Twitter and campaigning on the CervicalCheck cancer screening scandal.

Vicky is meeting with Taoiseach Leo Varadkar this afternoon.

Earlier this week, Vicky told Miriam O’Callaghan, on RTÉ Radio One, that she planned to ask him to make good on his promise that women affected by the scandal wouldn’t have to be “dragged” through the courts.

Previously: Vicky Phelan on Broadsheet

Pic: Rollingnews

Vicky Phelan at Glencairn House last night

Last night.

At the British ambassador’s residence Glencairn House in Leopardstown, Dublin where visiting Prince Harry and Meghan Markle were treated to a garden party, during which they met Vicky Phelan.

Limerick mum-of-two Vicky was recently awarded €2.5 million in a settlement against Clinical Pathology Laboratories in Austin, Texas – which receives outsourced smear tests from Ireland.

She was given an incorrect result smear test result in 2011 and subsequently diagnosed with cervical cancer in 2014.

She was only informed of the 2011 misdiagnosis last year.

Stephanie Grogran tweetz:

Vicky Phelan met Prince Harry and Meghan this evening. Meghan told her she had been following her story and to keep going. #royalvisitireland


Previously: Vicky Phelan on Broadsheet

From top: Dr Gabriel Scally, who is leading the scoping inquiry into the CervicalCheck/HSE scandal; Vicky Phelan

This morning.

Dr Gabriel Scally, who is leading the scoping inquiry into CervicalCheck’s screening programme has released a statement to say it “appears” that he now has access to files pertaining to his inquiry.

Yesterday, Limerick mum-of-two Vicky Phelan told Miriam O’Callaghan, on Today With Sean O’Rourke, that she had been speaking to Dr Scally and he was waiting on 2,000 files from the HSE.

Dr Scally has just released a statement, saying:

“As of today, it appears we now have access to documentation being provided to us by the HSE in a searchable format and with all redactions, apart from those relating to patient confidentiality, removed.

“We’re now checking this for completeness. This is a very welcome progress and will assist us in moving forward with our inquiry in a more time-efficient manner, I would like to acknowledge the co-operation of all HSE staff who have assisted in making this information available.”

Ms Phelan was recently awarded €2.5 million in a settlement against Clinical Pathology Laboratories in Austin, Texas – which receives outsourced smear tests from Ireland.

She was given a false negative smear test in 2011 and subsequently diagnosed with cervical cancer in 2014.

She was only informed of the 2011 misdiagnosis last year.

Ms Phelan now has terminal cancer.

Yesterday, she told Ms O’Callaghan:

“We’re still delay, deny, defend. And I spoke to Gabriel Scally earlier and he said he’s still being delayed with information. He’s waiting on 2,000 files. And everything is being put through lawyers. Why is that happening? I mean if they’re putting everything through their lawyers, there has to be a reason for that?

“And it’s heavily redacted so there is still a delay with this and it’s scandalous at this stage that we’re still no nearer the truth, how many months down the line.”

Yesterday, it emerged the number of cases involved in the CervicalCheck scandal has risen by 12 from 209 to 221, while the number of legal cases has risen to 35.

CervicalCheck scoping inquiry gets HSE files ‘in a searchable format’ (Irish Examiner)

Yesterday: Delay, Delay, Delay

Vicky Phelan

The letter by Dr Katharine Astbury regarding cancer screening programmes causes me great concern.

The writers, all 12 of them actively involved in the important work of cancer screening, chose to take issue with the legal process rather than question the medical failings that have caused death and serious harm to so many women through failures in the cervical screening programme.

They chose not to address the issue of the clear failure of the colposcopists working with CervicalCheck to inform women for, in some cases, years of the truth about their screening history and the serious errors that they and CervicalCheck alone knew about – errors that the vast majority of the women only learned about after my own legal proceedings made hiding the truth no longer possible.

Sadly for those 18 women who have already died, that truth remained hidden from them to the end. Denied to them also was the small comfort of knowing that their families would be provided for, at least to some financial degree, after their death.

Instead, the writers claim: “Approaches to redress need to recognise that automatic financial compensation for future false negative cases could lead to all screening programmes being abandoned”, and elsewhere that claiming that politicians and commentators have called for “uncontested compensation” for “all individuals who have false negatives on audit review”.

This is not the case. Women who have a false negative smear result do not have any legal recourse. It is only women whose smear has been incompetently read and who have suffered harm as a consequence who can bring legal proceedings.

Incompetence has no place in any screening progamme and to seek to give shelter to such incompetence at the expense of even one woman’s health, let alone 209, is wrong. It is also incorrect to argue that the choice is a safe and accountable screening programme or no cancer screening programme at all.

After all, it was not the legal process they criticise that caused all this harm.

The writers call for those reacting to this controversy to act responsibly in the sole interest of the health of Irish women since the stakes are extremely high.

As the woman who exposed this controversy, as an Irish woman and as a woman whose life is at stake as a result of medical and management failings, I am acting in the sole interest of the health of Irish women.

Unfortunately, the same cannot be said of many others.

Vicky Phelan,

Cian O’Carroll,

Annacotty,

Co Limerick.

Vicky Phelan on cervical screening scandal (Irish Times letters page)

From top: Tánaiste Simon Coveney, Minister for Health Simon Harris and Solidarity-People Before Profit TD Brid Smyth

This afternoon.

In the Dáil.

The CervicalCheck smear test scandal was raised again during Leaders’ Questions which were taken by Tánaiste Simon Coveney who told the Dáil that, this morning, he spoke to the husband of one of the 17 women who died.

Solidarity-People Before Profit Brid Smyth held up a diagram showing who is accountable to whom within the HSE and called for “heads to roll”.

Addressing the Minister for Health Simon Harris, she said she knows of a young health worker who was suspended from her job for two months for criticising HSE spending and the trolley crisis on Facebook.

The following are some points which were raised…

Fianna Fáil’s Dara Calleary told the Dáil:

“For many woman, their first point of contact to get the information was their GP. If they got an appointment with their GP, they found that CervicalCheck only actually formally contacted GPs this morning – eight days later [since Vicky Phelan’s case in the High Court] and they provided a completely innocuous update which provided no new information to the thousands of GPs around the country who are struggling to deal with this. Again, Tánaiste, I ask, why the delay?”

“…Tánaiste, when will the 38 remaining women who have yet to be informed of their audit be informed. Secondly, will all of these women receive medical supports and full medical supports. I’m aware of at least one of these women whose medical card was withdrawn over the past number of weeks, by HSE medical cards, and who is being put through the ringer to provide information. Yet, she was able to get a phone call recently to tell her about her false positive.”

“…The Taoiseach announced that women can have new smear tests undertaken, that is a welcome development. Will these smear tests be audited in a different laboratory from those that are currently being used to audit smear tests?”

“…Vicky Phelan this morning has called for a scoping inquiry, agreed last evening, to be held in public. Will the Government agree to her call?”

“…I want to ask you about comments made by the Secretary General of the Government this morning in the Public Accounts Committee to deputy Marc MacSharry in relation to sensitive cases. Were the Government alerted some months ago about this case in the context of the sensitive cases update?

Tánaiste Simon Coveney said:

“In relation to Tony O’Brien, my understanding from speaking to the health Minister, and I also think it seems to be breaking in the media, he is, he has confirmed to the Health Minister that he will be taking a leave of absence from any involvement outside the HSE between now and when he steps down from the HSE to focus on contributing in a positive manner to the work that needs to be done…”

“In relation to the list of sensitive cases that does get presented to Cabinet from time to time, we have asked the Cabinet Secretary to look at the lists of sensitive cases that had been on that, on that list. And Vicky Phelan’s case was not on the sensitive cases list.That’s my understanding. It is information I’ve been given literally on the way in to the House this evening. But that is my understanding in terms of the confirmation that the Secretary to the Government has provided.”

Irish Solidarity–People Before Profit TD Brid Smyth said:

“I’m not playing politics when I make this point. But we found out yesterday that the State Claims Agency received a request in January for her [Vicky Phelan] files, they then knew in March, the head of the National Screening Programme knew in March that there was a claim going to court.

“He kicked it up the line to the head of National Screening and they kicked it up the line to the department who knew in March. The minister didn’t know.

“Right. I’ll just make it simple for everybody who’s here. That is a diagram of the transitional organisation structure of the HSE. I’ve coloured you in, in blue, to match the colour of your shirt, Minister.

“But this here is the risk committee, answerable to you. This is here is the director general [of HSE] answerable to you. None of them told you but you are the boss. You’re at the head of all of this.

“None of them told you but none of them are fired, none of them are suspended. Go right down the line to where the information first came in. Nobody is in trouble for this.

“I know a young worker, a young hospital worker who was suspended for two months because she criticised HSE spending and the trolley crisis on a Facebook post.

“You have to make heads roll in that department for failing to tell you, for failing to be accountable. If you don’t, you should go minister.

“Because somebody has to go here.

“And I don’t believe you that you didn’t know, I don’t believe Tony O’Brien and I don’t believe that your department isn’t full of people who are trying to cover up and if you believe that they aren’t trying to cover up, that they’re all innocent and they’re all OK, then you are failing to do your job.

“That’s you at the head of the organisation, a fish rots from the head minister and you need to deal with it, or else you need to resign.”

Previously: Uncanny

Minister for Health Simon Harris

This evening.

At around 6pm.

The Minister for Health Simon Harris is expected to make a statement and answers questions in the Dáil about the CervicalCheck scandal.

He’s also expected to outline what kind of inquiry will take place into the matter.

Vicky Phelan has also tweeted that she has given her approval for the three-page memo which Mr Harris received about her case on April 16 – three days before Ms Phelan had a full day’s hearing in the High Court – to be made public this evening.

Update:

The Vicky Phelan memo

Leaders’ Questions will begin the Dáil at 2pm and can be watched live here.

Eamonn Farrell/Rollingnews

Vicky Phelan, her husband Jim and her solicitor Cian O’Carroll (in background)

Earlier this morning.

On RTÉ One’s Today With Seán O’Rourke.

Solicitor Cian O’Carroll, who represented Limerick mum-of-two Vicky Phelan in her recent High Court action, said he doesn’t trust the HSE’s position that just 206 women who developed cervical cancer after having a misdiagnosed smear test should have received earlier intervention.

Mr O’Carroll explained he cannot trust the figure because it was reached by the very same company that gave the wrong test results in the first place.

Readers will recall Ms Phelan was awarded €2.5 million in a settlement against Clinical Pathology Laboratories in Austin, Texas – which receives outsourced smear tests from Ireland – last week.

She was given a false negative smear test in 2011 and subsequently diagnosed with cervical cancer in 2014.

She was only informed of the 2011 misdiagnosis last year.

Ms Phelan now has terminal cancer.

During Today with Seán O’Rourke, Mr O’Carroll was asked what type of inquiry should be held into the matter.

He said:

“HIQA [Health Information and Quality Authority] is geared towards clinical standards and if the focus of this investigation is solely around clinical standards, that would be wrong.

“Because what’s happened here is well beyond that.

“This has got to do with corporate governance within Cervical Check, the HSE and the Department of Health.

“We have to find out why a direction was given to deceive the families of women who are dead and to deceive women who are now gravely ill. That was clearly done deliberately, having consciously considered what the plan would be to inform clinicians as to what they would do next and that’s clear from the correspondence we’ve seen and, of course, that letter from July 2016. I think an inquiry has to look at, first of all, the quality issue.

“What were the quality standards? Were they acceptable, benchmarked against international expected standards for cervical screening?

“That is a clinical governance issue.

“Secondly, there must be an inquiry, whether it’s part of that or by a separate agency, looking at the cover-up.

“Who was responsible? Who knew?

“And thirdly, related to Vicky Phelan, why is it that her case was fought so vigorously, even when the minister [for health Simon Harris] himself was informed about this case two or three days before it began?

“What was it about this case that they were so determined that she would be forced into a confidentiality clause that, through her courage, she ultimately defeated them on.

“Clearly, people in office knew that this case was going to cause serious trouble for people, in Cervical Check, the HSE and the Department of Health – enormous efforts and energy were put into forcing her to remain silent.”

“There are a lot of people out there who are very worried and a lot of people who feel, from their own experience, they’re telling a story that’s remarkably like Vicky Phelan’s and I think that’s why people are making contact [with him].

“They can see that they’ve had a diagnosis of cervical cancer after a history of clear smears.

“They haven’t been notified by anybody about a clinical audit. Now they’re expecting a telephone call.

“I wonder will they all get a phone call? Because I don’t trust this 206 figure.

“Remember the 206 cases – that ultimately comes from an analysis of cases performed by Med Lab which is the organisation that performed the screening of the smears in the first place.

“So Cervical Check thought it was appropriate to have the clinical audit and lookback performed by the very people who had done such an appalling job at reading the smears in the first place.”

“I would have thought that the 1,480 or so cases, that were identified, of women who had diagnosis or cervical cancer, following a clear smear – all 1,480 of those cases will have to be taken out and examined independently by cytologists.

“That’s not such an enormous task as it sounds – each slide, as I understand it, would take about five minutes to be correctly viewed and then reported on thereafter.

“But that’s the only way that it’s going to be, that trust for these figures will emerge.

“Because you cannot have a system where an organisation, no matter how conscientious they may be, clearly, there is a risk that their reporting would tend to way from liability against themselves.”

[To clarify, Med Lab did not carry out Ms Phelan’s original screening in 2011. This was performed by Clinical Pathology Laboratories in Austin Texas – whom Ms Phelan settled her High Court action against for €2.5 million last week. However, Med Lab and Clinical Pathology Laboratories are sister companies and have the same parent company, Sonic Healthcare.]

Listen back in full here

Earlier: HSE Boss ‘Dismissed My Concerns’ About Cervical Screening Results

RTE