Government playing with people’s lives, says hospital group

CAMPAIGNERS calling for the restoration of full maternity services to Monaghan General Hospital have accused the Government of playing Russian roulette with the lives of mothers and babies.

Independent Monaghan TD Paudge Connolly said it was an indictment of the health services that a second mother had been forced to give birth on the roadside in the space of seven months.

Last December, baby Bronagh Livingstone, born prematurely to 32-year-old Denise Livingstone, died following her delivery during the 25-mile trip to Cavan General Hospital.

Ms Livingstone was refused treatment in Monaghan because the hospital’s maternity services had been suspended after Monaghan General lost its recognition as a training hospital. The service is not likely to be restored following the recent retirement of the hospital’s consultant gynaecologist.

Yesterday Deputy Connolly said while there had been a happy outcome to the latest roadside delivery, the next mother may not be as lucky.

“I predict this will happen again and there is no guarantee that the next baby will not suffer the same fate as Bronagh,” he said.

On Thursday night, Anna Kucina gave birth to a baby girl, just 15 minutes into their journey to Cavan. Both are believed to be doing well.

Meanwhile, a consultant commissioned by the Department of Health to examine ways of preventing deaths among people denied access to local hospital services expects his report to be ready within the next week or two.

Management consultant Kevin Bonner has been looking at ways of implementing the findings of the Livingstone report, also commissioned by the Department of Health after the death of baby Bronagh.

The report recommended an out-of-hours service (Monaghan hospital is currently not on-call) and the establishment of a ‘flying squad’ of maternity staff, stationed at either Drogheda or Cavan, available to accompany a mother-in-labour during the journey from Monaghan.

Mr Bonner said his report had a wider remit than just looking at the recommendations of the Livingstone report. He said he was looking at cost implications.

Meanwhile, the Monaghan Hospital Community Alliance has called for the immediate publication of the Bonner report.

A statement from the alliance said: “The staff in the hospital must make clinical decisions as to whether to hold the patient or transfer. In many recent cases the decision was to transfer and the time was adequate so the expectant mother reached Cavan in time.

“In the case this week the birth came faster than expected. This was fine as no complications arose but if complications had presented then we could have been looking at another tragedy.”