This article is from page 23 of the 2008-09-23 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 23 JPG
CANCER patients who may have been misdiagnosed at Ennis Gen- eral Hospital were last night urged to come forward. The call was made by Karl Henry, the husband of Ann Moriarty, whose cancer was misdi- agnosed at the hospital. Mr Henry reiterated his calls for a full inde- pendent enquiry. Ms Moriarty died from cancer last April, at the age of 53. She had been given the all- clear at Ennis General Hospital, just months earlier.
He made the comment in the wake of another misdiagnosis case emerg- ing over the weekend. 26-year-old Edel Kelly lost her battle with cancer in June, having also been misdiag- nosed previously.
“My concern from day one was there may be others. I wasn’t expect- ing there would be another situation quite as appalling as that of Edel Kelly appears to be,” he said.
“The Department of Health seems to think the people of Ennis and Clare are entitled to a sub-standard health system,” he added.
In the wake of Mr Henry going pub- lic with details of his wife’s misdiag- nosis, the HSE said it was an isolated case. The revelations about the Edel
Kelly case angered him, but he said he is trying to leave those feelings to one side and continue the fight on be- half of his wife.
“That my wife’s case was an isolat- ed one has a particularly hollow ring to it,” he said.
Mr Henry met with the Health Minister Mary Harney last week. Although he did not receive a com- mitment that an independent enquiry would be carried out, he feels that his case was listened to.
“I was reasonably happy. She is now very familiar with the full facts of my wife’s case,” he said.
He will continue to fight for an in- dependent enquiry. “All we have is Ennis investigating Ennis. That is not acceptable,” he said.
The Kellys yesterday called for Minister Harney to resign. However, Mr Henry said he would not support Wee
“IT wouldn’t support calls for the re- moval of the minister that this time. We do need to know what is going on. There are serious failings,” he said.
Both the Kellys and Mr Henry have expressed an interest in meeting up, to discuss their cases.
‘I know the difficulties they are en- countering,” he said.