CHI consultant who allegedly breached patient-referral guidelines faced no disciplinary action
A consultant working at
Children's Health Ireland
(CHI) who was at the centre of an internal review for allegedly referring public patients to his own weekend clinic did not face disciplinary action, The Irish Times has learned.
The consultant instead retired, after the investigation highlighted issues around governance and adherence to correct procedures in a children's hospital.
According to the unpublished findings of the investigation, reported by the Sunday Times, the consultant breached HSE guidelines by referring patients he was seeing in his public practice to weekend clinics he was operating separately.
This decision delayed operations for sick children by up to three years, the newspaper reported, with the funding for some of these clinics coming from the National treatment Purchase Fund (NTPF), which seeks to reduce hospital waiting lists.
READ MORE
However, it is understood the clinician did not face disciplinary proceedings, nor was he referred to the Irish Medical Council. He no longer works for CHI.
Legal advice is currently being sought about the publication of the report, which
Bernard Gloster
, chief executive of the HSE, has called for.
[
Health staff found 'ingratiating themselves financially' will be referred to gardaí, HSE chief says
Opens in new window
]
Mr Gloster said he was unaware of the situation before the media reports, and has requested a copy of the report from the new CHI chief executive, Lucy Nugent.
'I assure you if anything connected with, or near connected with alleged people ingratiating themselves financially in the public health system, the first step I'll be taking is to refer that matter to the gardaí,' he told RTÉ on Sunday.
In a statement, a spokeswoman for CHI said the organisation 'regularly' conducts internal reviews 'to ensure any issues are identified and addresses across our services'.
'CHI is a learning organisation and service improvements through internal reviews and clinical audits, which are an essential tool to support this, will continue to be a priority,' the spokeswoman said.
'This internal review report from 2021 included recommendations, which at the time were accepted, implemented and continue to be implemented.'
In a statement, the NTPF said it is 'deeply concerned' by the reports around the internal investigation, but added that payments are only made to hospitals directly and never to individual consultants.
The NTPF said it is liaising closely with the
Department of Health
, the
HSE
and the CHI on the matter.
A spokeswoman for Minister for Health
Jennifer Carroll MacNeill
said she recognises this story will 'cause further distress for parents and families'.
'The Department of Health is not routinely notified of internal examinations within acute hospitals, and no such notification was made in this case under existing patient safety protocols,' she said.
'The Minister continues to engage with officials in her department and the HSE on this matter.'
The revelation is the latest in a number of controversies facing CHI, which was established in January 2019 as a new entity to govern and deliver acute paediatric services and which currently operates hospitals in Crumlin, Temple Street and Tallaght.
On Friday, the HSE published an audit on developmental dysplasia of the hip surgeries, which found almost 70 per cent of these procedures carried out in two hospitals – Temple Street and the National Orthopaedic Hospital Cappagh – over a three-year period
were not necessary
.
[
Opinion: Hip surgery audit: How many more times will we hear 'this can never happen again'?
Opens in new window
]
[
Spinal surgeries report: The story behind the springs used on children
Opens in new window
]
Last month, the
Health Information and Quality Authority
(Hiqa) published a report on the implantation of unlicensed springs into three children with scoliosis, which described the situation as 'wrong'.
Another report, by UK expert Selvadurai Nayagam, is also being conducted into orthopaedic surgery at Temple Street following reports of poor surgical outcomes.
Senior health sources have said there is a 'serious lack of confidence' in CHI following these issues, with discussions currently centring around how it should operate in the future, and whether it should be subsumed back under the HSE.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Irish Times
3 hours ago
- Irish Times
Garda cameras planned for railway level crossings, with automatic fines and penalty points
There have been 30 railway level-crossing incidents so far this year, with 11 resulting in injuries or damage to the crossings, according to Iarnród Éireann . It says Garda safety cameras will be introduced at crossings, resulting in possible fines and penalty points for motorists. The data was published on International Level Crossing Awareness day (ILCAD), an initiative of the International Union of Railways (UIC) of which Iarnród Éireann is a member. An Garda Síochána plans to introduce up to six Go Safe safety cameras at railway level crossings. READ MORE The cameras will record motorists using the crossing and will automatically issue a fine of €160 in respect of speeding, or €80 in respect of breaking a red light. Motorists will be liable for three penalty points for either. The most frequent locations involved in level crossing incidents are in counties Dublin and Wicklow – Serpentine Avenue in Ballsbridge (five incidents), Sutton (three incidents) and Bray, Claremont, Coolmine and Sandymount (two incidents at each). The majority of level crossing incidents involve vehicles striking crossing gates or barriers, resulting in damage. There are currently 861 level crossings on the Iarnród Éireann network, and these are a combination of automated CCTV crossings, manned crossings and unmanned user-operated accommodation crossings. Iarnród Éireann has closed 134 crossings between 2014 and June 2025, and the company says it is working to eliminate as many level crossings as practicable. Iarnród Éireann chief executive Jim Meade said: 'I welcome the forthcoming roll out of Go Safe cameras at our level crossings. Driver behaviour is becoming more and more problematic at level crossings and I believe these measures will result in improved safety for all, protecting rail and road users alike.' Almost 300 people die at level crossings across Europe every year and level-crossing incidents account for 1 per cent of road deaths in Europe, and 31 per cent of all rail fatalities. Ireland's record remains stronger than the European average, with no level crossing fatalities since 2010.
Irish Times
5 hours ago
- Irish Times
‘Fear and distrust': why children's healthcare is in crisis
Children operated on when there was no need; industrial springs being used instead of approved medical devices; a doctor diverting children to his own private clinic leading to them facing dangerous treatment delays; and a poisonous work culture on the wards – these are some of the issues that have emerged in our children's hospitals. And that's before the not so little matter of the massive budgetary and time overruns that plague the unfinished national children's hospital. The body tasked with overseeing the healthcare of the nation's children is Children's Health Ireland. It was founded in 2019 and in just six years has faced a mounting number of controversies and scandals. READ MORE Questions are now being asked about the ability of CHI to do its job. And that's a job that will get all the more complicated when the children's hospitals, each with their own culture and way of doing things, have to merge under one roof when the new hospital opens. CHI is funded by the HSE and answers to it, so what role does the State's healthcare body play in all this? And what is Minister for Health Jennifer Carroll McNeill going to do as CHI lurches from crisis to crisis? Irish Times health correspondent Shauna Bowers explains. Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Declan Conlon.
Irish Times
6 hours ago
- Irish Times
SOS cancer hotline making ‘a real, tangible difference in the lives of people going through chemotherapy'
An SOS hotline has saved Pauline Doyle, who is being treated for breast cancer , from many trips to a hospital emergency department over the past two years. In this case, SOS stands for Sort Out my Symptoms and it was an initiative that was kick-started by the Covid-19 pandemic. Five years on, this early intervention service has more than proved its worth in keeping vulnerable cancer patients in active treatment away from extra visits to hospital if at all possible, or at least bypassing the ED. 'It is the nearest thing we have to scheduling non-scheduled care,' says Maria Gillespie, assistant director of nursing for what is formally known as the Acute Haematology Oncology nursing Service (AHOS). It started in 2020, when the National Cancer Control Programme received funding for a designated nurse specialist in each of the 26 hospital cancer centres around the State . They were to be available at the end of a phone line for patients in treatment who felt unwell at home. It has grown as a national network since, standardising the approach to ensure there is no so-called 'postcode lottery' at play in this aspect of care. Identical information leaflets and alert cards are handed out at each centre and are available in 10 languages. An additional 18 nurse specialists are now being recruited to bolster the service in the busiest hospitals. READ MORE 'In 2020, we received 1,137 calls,' says Gilliespie. 'Last year, in 2024, we received 21,873 calls. We know it works.' Pauline Doyle. Doyle, who lives in Drumsna, Co Leitrim, and attends St James's Hospital in Dublin for her cancer treatment, says the SOS hotline is something that makes 'a real, tangible difference in the lives of people going through chemotherapy'. She was diagnosed at the end of 2023, after finding a lump in a breast and going to her GP. A mother of two children, aged 10 and 12, she had six months of pre-surgery chemotherapy, followed by radiotherapy after her surgery. She is currently undergoing one year of post-surgery chemotherapy, for which she visits St James's once every three weeks. 'From very early on, and I think this is probably a lot of people's experience, I've had issues with my chemo, and difficulty managing side effects. I've required [hospital] admission a few times. So to have this service has been absolutely invaluable. It has kept me away from the emergency department on lots of occasions. [ I was completely numb and couldn't take it in - I didn't think I would hear the words, 'sorry, you have breast cancer' Opens in new window ] 'It's amazing to have somebody at the end of the line that knows you, that knows your case, that knows your history. Sometimes it's something small. All you need is a piece of advice – take this medication, take that medication. Other times it's, 'Come in and we'll see you.'' If a patient does need to go in after being triaged over the phone, they can go straight to the cancer ward to be seen by that nurse, who will then get a doctor to review them. Blood tests can be done immediately. At the outset of treatment, Doyle, who is currently on leave from work as a mental health nurse, was allergic to her first chemotherapy drugs. 'I came out in very bad skin rashes.' She was ringing the hotline for management of that and the dermatology service was organised to see her as soon as she went in. She has experienced various health issues since, the most recent proving to be a chest infection. Again, the call to the nurse specialist ensured they were all ready for her after she was advised to come in. 'I attended with persistent coughing and they got me a chest X-ray and bloods organised straight away. They could give me the all clear that day, start me on the course of medication and get me turned around and home within an hour or two.' Doyle does not like to think how long all that might have taken if she had gone through the ED, which she has had to do on occasion if in trouble over the weekend when the nurse specialist was off. While she stresses that the ED staff are fantastic, the difference between going through ED and using the SOS hotline is 'night and day'. Gillespie is full of enthusiasm for how well the service is working. 'Really strong foundations have been laid and we're well positioned to grow.' Maria Gillespie, AHOS assistant director of nursing However, she is also mindful that 'the current model is really vulnerable' because many of the cancer centres still have just one nurse providing the service. There is no cover at weekends or during their six weeks of annual holidays. 'When that nurse goes on leave, the impact is instant,' she says. There are plans to build it up into a 24/7 service, but, in the meantime, they have decided to use the allocation of €700,000 ring-fenced annual funding for the 18 additional posts to strengthen it Monday to Friday. 'We've done a really detailed health needs assessment for where we allocate those,' says Gillespie, who explains how the AHOS works. It was adopted from a system that has been operating in the UK for 20 years. Anybody receiving cancer treatment, be that chemotherapy, immunotherapy or radiotherapy, is informed by a nurse specialist about the possible side effects. They are also given a dedicated SOS hotline number to ring if they have any worries and issues such as high or low temperature, nausea, diarrhoea, vomiting, fatigue, anorexia, constipation, urinary symptoms. During the phone call they will be triaged through a standardised system. The next steps are planned according to that assessment. If it's a 'red' symptom, such as a fever, that patient requires an urgent, in-hospital check. 'It can signal an infection and/or sepsis and both of them can be life-threatening for cancer patients.' [ Breakthrough by DCU researcher promises improved 'chemo' with fewer side effects Opens in new window ] If it's an 'amber' assessment, that means the patient has to be seen within 24 hours. However, if the patient has two ambers, then the nurse specialist will escalate them straight away to a red. A 'green' symptom is a side effect that can be managed at home with self-care and follow-up advice. There are no 'wrong' reasons for using the hotline, she stresses, and over time a trusting relationship builds up between the patient and their nurse specialist. Video-enabled care is also being rolled out as part of this service, after a successful pilot project that was started in Naas hospital last year. In nearly 20 of the cancer centres the nurse specialist now has a widescreen monitor on which they review symptoms that can be shown by a patient using their smartphone or other device. The ability to view common problems, such as a sore mouth or infected Hickman line (tube into vein), makes a significant difference in the accuracy of assessment gradings. 'That early intervention is key; being able to actually see patients, that prevents the symptom from becoming worse,' says Gillespie. 'It prevents the patient having to call an ambulance the following day and somebody being in a totally different situation.' Previously, patients may have delayed seeking care because they could not face going through ED. 'There will always be times when patients have to go to the emergency department, if someone has chest pain, for example,' says Gillespie, 'but it's really to avoid as many visits as possible. Cancer patients don't belong in the ED.' The AHOS staff love their jobs, she says, because they can see the very positive benefits for patients. Every time she visits one of the hospitals involved, she always drives away reflecting on the 'phenomenal' impact that one nurse specialist can make. 'The service shows what's possible,' she adds, 'when you put patient-centred design, national leadership and expert nursing together.' From her personal experience, Doyle wholeheartedly supports further resourcing of the SOS hotline network, towards a 24/7 operation. 'When you're really struggling with side effects, it means an awful lot to be able to access a service like this that can look after you and that know you, and that you're not waiting in a big system to get through.'
