Blind boy receives €3.2m in damages

A blind 13-year-old boy who sued over an alleged delay in operating on him when he had a potentially blinding eye disorder at birth, has settled his damages action for €3.2m.

Noel McCarthy is totally and permanently blind, but up until seven years ago, he had some navigation vision.

Noel, the High Court heard, is a smart, bright boy who follows sport by listening to the commentary. He has also had to learn braille.

The schoolboy, of Griffith Aveune, Mallow, Co Cork, had, through his mother, Abina, sued consultant opthalmologist, Gerard O’Connor, who practises at Cork University Hospital, and the HSE.

Liability was admitted in the case, which was before the court for assessment of damages only.

Noel was born premature at 25 weeks and five days on August 4, 2001, at Erinville Hospital in Cork. He had a number of problems.

It was claimed premature babies are prone to an eye disorder — retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) and he should have been immediately reviewed by an appropriately qualified opthalmic surgeon and treated. It was claimed Noel was screened for ROP, but not on a timely basis.

On September 27, 2001, Noel was diagnosed as having stage two ROP in both eyes, and on October 5, Mr O’Connor conducted a further review and ordered that the baby be observed.

On October 11, it was claimed a further opthalmology review was performed and it was noted the eye disorder was still at the same stage in the baby’s left eye but had progressed to stage three threshold disease in his right eye.

Noel, it was claimed, was reviewed by Mr O’Connor on October 12, and on the next day, Mr O’Connor confirmed the progression of the condition in the right eye and recorded surgery should be performed.

However, it was claimed surgery was not performed until October 17, 2001, and it was the McCarthy’s case that the delay fell below the acceptable standard or care.

Noel’s counsel Dermot Gleeson, told the court as soon as the disease was detected, the baby should have been operated on, ideally that day or within three days, but six days passed before the operation.

It was further claimed the defendants ought to have known as soon as threshold disease is diagnosed, treatment in the form of surgical intervention was required as a matter of urgency and timing was critical.

It was alleged there was a failure to properly screen Noel and treat him promptly when a threshold disease was manifest, that there was a delay in undertaking surgery and a failure to have any adequate or proper procedures in place to ensure a premature baby with a diagnosis of threshold disease was immediately attended to in an appropriate fashion.

The claims were denied.

While Noel had some navigation vision following surgery, he developed glaucoma in 2007 and has been permanently blind since.

Approving the settlement, Mr Justice Kevin Cross said it gave Noel very good certainty for the future and he wished the family well.