Woman was ‘shocked’ to fall pregnant after surgery

A woman who became pregnant after an alleged failed sterilisation and gave birth to a baby who died five months later has launched a High Court action for damages.

Karen Hurley-Ahern, aged 39, a mother of two, was shocked to find herself pregnant because she had a blood-clotting disorder and had decided not to have any more children because of potential risks.

She and her husband, Garret Ahern, are suing consultant gynaecologist Victor Moore, who carried out the sterilisation in Tralee General, Co Kerry, in 2001, and the Southern Health Board, now the HSE. They are seeking damages, alleging failures including negligence in how the operation was performed. The defendants deny the claims and say the couple were wa-rned of the risk of failure.

The court was told of the couple’s shock of not only finding out Karen was pregnant again, but of the five months of trauma and upset as their third child, Samuel, born with severe abnormalities, fought to survive, but died as a result of complications from open-heart surgery to try to keep him alive.

Ms Hurley-Ahern, of Assumpta Park, Newcastle West, Limerick, told the court when she discovered she was pregnant she was “in total shock”.

She and Garret were planning to get married that year and now she had to face a difficult pregn-ancy as well as “walking up the aisle pregnant”.

She said she had a rare disorder which causes thrombosis, particularly during pregnancy. Following a miscarriage and two difficult pregnancies and two healthy children, the couple were advised by doctors that another pregnancy would be extremely harmful to Karen’s health.

She was also advised her condition meant there was a greatly increased risk that another child would suffer from severe deformities and disabilities.

They agreed Karen should get sterilised and a tubal ligation was carried out in Feb 2001.

It was claimed that while “Filshie clips” were applied to her fallopian tubes, it was not done correctly and the tubes should have instead been cauterised. They said they were not advised the procedure ran the risk of failure or that additional precautions should be taken to avoid pregnancy.

Samuel had to stay in hospital for the entire five months of his life. In Mar 2003 the couple were asked by doctors if they would turn off the machine keeping him alive.

“We still could not turn off the machine but it got really bad and he was fighting for every breath and I then said to the doctor, we are ready,” said Ms Hurley-Ahern.

He died 33 minutes later. “It was so bittersweet, for the first time I could hold my son because he had no tubes in him.”

Doctors asked if they could take Samuel’s body for research to see what way his heart had been pumping but Ms Hurley-Ahern said they just wanted to bring him home, which they did.

The hearing continues.