Tipperary family receives apology from HSE after missed scan led to father’s death

A Tipperary family has received an apology from the HSE and an admission of negligence and breach of duty of care following the death of their father, John Tuohy, after a court hearing into his treatment.

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Mr Tuohy, aged 68, from Toomevara, died at University Hospital Limerick (UHL) on September 14, 2022, after suffering falls at his home that caused a head injury.

His daughter, Joanne Tuohy, brought a medical negligence case against the HSE, claiming damages for her father’s wrongful death. The case alleged negligence and breach of duty in the assessment, diagnosis, treatment, management and care of Mr Tuohy, including the diagnosis and treatment of the head injuries he sustained.

The court heard that Mr Tuohy suffered from cardiomyopathy, a heart muscle disease, and had been prescribed anticoagulants, commonly known as blood thinners.

Following his admission to UHL on September 11, 2022, after the falls, a duty doctor requested a CAT scan and an assessment for the presence of traumatic intracranial haemorrhage. 

The doctor noted that Mr Tuohy had no recollection of events surrounding his falls. However, the request did not refer to the fact that he was taking blood thinning medication.

The request for the CAT scan was rejected by a radiology registrar and subsequently cancelled after it was deemed not to fall within National Institute of Care Excellence guidelines.

Mr Tuohy was discharged from UHL at approximately 8pm that evening. After returning home, his condition deteriorated and he became unwell and began vomiting. He was taken back to hospital by ambulance in the early hours of September 12, when a CAT scan revealed a large subdural haemorrhage and a fracture at the base of his skull.

He died two days later in the hospital’s intensive care unit.

Joanne Tuohy, represented by barrister Patrick Treacy and instructed by Pádraic Hayes of Cian O’Carroll Solicitors, submitted that the hospital failed to adequately monitor her father’s condition, failed to carry out a CAT scan at the earliest opportunity when it was required due to his condition, and failed to record his medication or his amnesia following the falls.

It was further submitted that the Tuohy family had lost a beloved father, husband and grandfather and had suffered profound stress, mental distress, psychological upset and financial loss as a result.

Mr Treacy read a formal apology from UHL to the family in court. He stated that causation and negligence had been fully admitted by the hospital.

In the apology, UHL and the HSE said they wished to offer their sincere condolences to the Tuohy family following Mr Tuohy’s death. 

The apology acknowledged that a CAT scan should have been carried out on September 11, 2022, and accepted that the failure to do so was an error and a breach of duty by the hospital which led to Mr Tuohy’s death.

The apology also acknowledged that the experience was devastating for the family and expressed regret for the failings and substandard care provided, along with the distress caused.

Judge Paul Coffey extended his deepest sympathy to the Tuohy family and ordered that they receive the statutory payment of €35,000 along with their legal costs.

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