HSE says it had 'no choice' but to refer face mask complaint against GP to Medical Council

The HSE has defended a decision by one of its local offices to refer a complaint against a Dublin GP to the Medical Council after he refused to exempt a patient from wearing a mask, saying the complaint is outside its jurisdiction.

A spokesperson for the HSE’s Dublin South, Kildare, and West Wicklow Community Healthcare Organisation said that if a complaint against a medical professional cannot be resolved with the physician themselves, “then they will have to raise the complaint with the relevant governing agency”.

They said that in conjunction with the Health Act 2004 complaints against a doctor’s “clinical judgement” cannot be investigated under the HSE’s own ‘Your Service Your Say’ policy.

“Clinical judgement complaints can only be dealt with by the professional body that the medical professional is registered with,” they said.

The case in question involves the decision by Dr William Behan, who operates his practice out of Walkinstown on the Dublin’s south side, to deny a letter of dispensation to a patient who told him that she “felt that she couldn’t wear masks” and that “they weren’t for her”.

Upon Dr Behan’s refusal, the patient initially complained to the local HSE office. However, an officer there, having consulted with Dr Behan, told the complainant that the issue was “going around in circles”, and suggested that she escalate the problem to the Medical Council, which is charged with holding physicians to account over malpractice.

The case is due to be heard on September 10. The Council has many avenues open to it, including ordering a full fitness to practise inquiry. It also can elect to dismiss the complaint, however.

Meanwhile, the decision by the local HSE office to refer Dr Behan to the Medical Council has been labelled as “outrageous” and “absurd” by fellow south Dublin GP Dr Maitiú Ó Tuathail.

“If a patient came up to me and asked me to excuse them from wearing a seatbelt, you would say no. This is no different. It’s absurd,” he said.

Dr Ó Tuathail said that in his own practice roughly four requests are being received per week requesting exemption from having to wear a mask.

“The very people who don’t want to wear one are those who are most at risk,” he said.

He described being referred to the Council as “worse than getting a divorce”.

“Anybody can make a complaint, and whether it’s vexatious or not it has to be investigated. If it’s found to be false nothing ever happens to the person who makes the complaint,” he said.

Referring to Dr Behan, who he knows personally, as “a stellar GP”, Ó Tuathail said he hopes the complaint will be thrown out.

“But it’s still a long process William has to go through. The Medical Council has better things to be doing,” he said.

Genuine reasons for not being able to wear a mask are quite specific, he said, and include: having a disability rendering it difficult to put a mask on or off; having a severe intellectual disability; having a severe psychiatric condition; or having severe autism or an underlying respiratory illness.

“I haven’t come across one reason to give out such a letter yet, nor do I know of any doctor who has,” he said.