€4m settlement agreed in brain-damage birth case

A 27-year-old brain-damaged woman who had sued over the circumstances of her birth has settled her action against the HSE for €4m.

The action was brought on behalf of Rachel McCarthy by her mother Noreen arising out of the circumstances of her birth at St Luke’s Hospital, Kilkenny, on December 9, 1989.

It was alleged the HSE was negligent in its duty of care towards Rachel in the manner in which it managed her birth. It was claimed she suffered a lack of oxygen, resulting in a permanent brain injury.