CUH ethics forum ‘did not halt’ abortion trip
A spokesperson also refused to say who sits on the forum until those sitting on it are first contacted, but said it is made up of “medical and non-medical people”, including people with legal, theology and philosophy backgrounds and a member of the public, all of whom volunteer their time.
The HSE did confirm, however, that a Dr Fergus Walsh chairs the body.
The woman at the centre of the case, 39-year-old Michelle Harte from Ardamine, Co Wexford, said doctors at Cork University Hospital — where she was being treated for cancer — advised her to terminate her pregnancy because of risks to her health.
However, Ms Harte said an ethics forum at the hospital took a decision not to allow her to have an abortion in Ireland on the basis that her life was not under “immediate threat”.
She said her doctor had felt confident the ethics committee would agree with the risks, and was astounded when the forum gave advice to the contrary.
Ms Harte said the forum, as far as she knew, instructed that the hospital would not be covered legally if the termination went ahead and so her own doctor had no choice but to go along with the decision.
A spokesperson for the HSE said doctors should be guided and “not instructed” by the opinion of the ethics forum and it was ultimately up to the woman’s medical team how to proceed.
Ms Harte, a former nurse from London, said she waited for about two weeks for a decision from the ethics forum, while difficulties in arranging travel contributed to a further three-week delay. During this time, she said her condition worsened and she was not able to receive cancer treatment because she was pregnant.
A HSE spokesperson said the forum arranges emergency meetings where necessary within 48-72 hours. “The forum comprehensively considers any case referred to it and conclusions are reached within a week to 10 days,” the spokesperson said.
Although abortion is legal in circumstances where the life of the mother is at risk, last week the European Court of Human Rights ruled the Irish State’s restrictions on abortion violate women’s human rights.
The court found Ireland had failed to respect the applicant’s private life contrary to article 8 of the convention, as there was no accessible and effective procedure to enable her to establish whether she qualified for a lawful termination of pregnancy in accordance with Irish law.
The Government has said it will examine the judgment carefully and consider what steps are required to implement it.
Figures from an ESRI report in relation to discharges from acute public hospitals in 2009 show that 10,679 accounted for “pregnancy with abortive outcome” due to health complications.
