Hospital held organs of child post-mortem for 20 years due to 'ambiguity' over disposal rules

The Voice of Our Angels group protesting at Cork University Maternity Hospital, including Laura Kelleher who wants to know if the parents of babies at other hospitals highlighted in the audit report have been notified about their children’s organs. Picture: Larry Cummins

The organs of a child on whom a post-mortem examination was performed were held by a Dublin hospital for over 20 years due to “ambiguity” regarding how they should be disposed of.

An internal audit investigation by the HSE, the result of which has been seen by the Irish Examiner, has found that multiple public hospitals across the country have retained organs from post-mortem examinations for more than the one year specified in the HSE’s own policies.