No restrictions imposed on doctor who endorsed Neary
Professor Walter Prendiville, who had a finding of professional misconduct upheld against him this week by the Medical Council, is to remain on as president of the prestigious British Society for Colposcopy and Cervical Pathology.
Trustee and founder of the society, Dr Joe Jordan, said he did not consider Prof Prendiville’s position untenable. He said Prof Prendiville had the society’s support and would remain president until his term is up in 2008.
Prof Prendiville was one of three obstetricians found guilty of misconduct for his part in a report exonerating disgraced obstetrician Dr Michael Neary. The three recommended Dr Neary be allowed continue working at Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital in Drogheda after serious concerns had been raised about his surgical removal of the wombs of many women. Neary was subsequently struck off the medical register by the Medical Council.
Yesterday, Dr Jordan said Prof Prendiville had been “very open about it [the fitness to practice (FTP) inquiry]” from the beginning.
“He said if anything horrid should come out of it, we (the society) would have to decide what to do then,” Dr Jordan said.
However, because the Medical Council chose not to impose restrictions on Prof Prendiville’s practice, despite upholding the guilty verdict, Dr Jordan said there was no question of him relinquishing his presidency.
“If there had been any censure, it would have been different, but given they didn’t restrict his practice, we are happy for him to continue as president.”
Dr Jordan added: “We feel it would be a tragedy if he was prevented from practicing. He is highly respected for the calibre of his work.”
The decision to endorse Prof Prendiville’s position was made by the three trustees of the British Society (which has a strong Irish membership), including the immediate past president and the secretary. It was not made by its executive.
Although the decision was based on the preliminary report of the FTP inquiry, which Prof Prendiville forwarded to them, Dr Jordan said it was “not a snap judgement”. He said they had assumed the Medical Council would uphold the guilty verdict.
Yesterday, Patient Focus questioned if the British society had spoken to any of the women damaged by Neary before making their decision to support Prof Prendiville. The society has only been in contact with Prof Prendiville.
Sheila O’Connor, spokes- person for the lobby group, which represents more than 150 of Neary’s former patients, said the society’s decision “certainly sounds like more evidence of collegiality”.
Judge Maureen Harding Clark, who presided over the Lourdes Hospital Inquiry, which examined the high rate of Caesarean hysterectomies at the Louth hospital, to which Neary was central, previously referred to the report of the three obstetricians as being “motivated by compassion and collegiality”.
The other two obstetricians who prepared the report are Dr John Murphy, consultant obstetrician and gynaecologist at the National Maternity Hospital, Holles Street and president of the Royal College of Physicians of Ireland (RCPI) and Dr Bernard Stuart of the Coombe Women’s Hospital. The RCPI has yet to clarify its position in relation to Dr Murphy’s role as president.
