Family of man who died after medical errors awarded €76,000

The family of a 21-year-old man who died following a litany of medical failures and errors are to donate to charity the total of €76,000 paid to them in settlement of their High Court action against two consultants, two general practitioners and Cork's Mercy Hospital.

It was "quite clear" that Kevin Murphy should not have died, the court heard.

Although Kevin's condition of severe hypercalcaemia (elevated levels of calcium in the blood) was noted in late 1997, almost two years before his death, and although he was seen afterwards by a number of doctors, the standard procedures for treating the condition were never implemented.

Kevin's father, Mr Barry Murphy, was diagnosed with the same condition three months after Kevin's death and successfully underwent treatment, the family said.

Kevin was eventually admitted to Cork's Mercy Hospital on September 23rd, 1999. Blood test results, described as "vitally important", were written on a "post-it" note which in turn was attached to his referral letter. However, the consultant who saw Kevin said the "post-it" was attached to the back of the letter and he did not see it until after Kevin died.

In the hospital, Kevin's condition was misdiagnosed as nephritis and he was treated on the basis of the Mercy hospital's standard blood tests, which did not include a serum calcium level test. His condition continued to deteriorate and he was transferred to Cork University Hospital on September 25th, where he was treated at registrar, not consultant, level.

He died of cardiac arrest there the following day. At the time of death, the level of calcium in his blood was higher than any ever recorded at the CUH.

The legal action brought by Kevin's family arising from the failure to diagnose and treat his underlying severe hypercalcaemia was never about money but was taken to rectify the "grave injustice" done to Kevin and to prevent such a situation occurring again, his family said yesterday.

At the request of Mr Paul Sreenan SC, for the family, Mr Justice Murphy ruled a settlement of €76,601 in the action by Ms Dorothy Murphy, sister of Kevin, against Dr Neil Brennan, a consultant at the Mercy Hospital, Cork; the Mercy Hospital; Dr George Mullan, an orthopaedic surgeon, and Kevin's general practitioners, Dr Norman Murphy and Dr Fergus O'Connell.

The action was also brought against the Southern Health Board over Kevin's treatment at the CUH, but it denied liability and the award is not against it.

Ms Adrienne Egan, for the other defendants, said yesterday her clients accepted liability, regretted what had happened and wanted to express their sorrow for Kevin's death.

The €76,601 is to go to the charities Bóthar and the Make A Wish Foundation. When ruling the settlement, Mr Justice Murphy extended his sympathy to the family and expressed the hope that their action would ensure that cases like Kevin's would not occur again.

Ms Dorothy Murphy told the court she was very affected by Kevin's death. Her family had never wanted to take legal action but had had to watch her brother die "knowing he shouldn't".

In an affidavit, Mr Ernest Cantillon, solicitor for the family, said Kevin had gone to Dr Norman Murphy, a GP, in 1997 complaining of persistent pain in the dorsal spine. This pain was explicable by hypercalcaemia. Dr Murphy referred him to Mr Mullan, an orthopaedic surgeon, who first saw him on November 26th, 1997. Mr Mullan arranged for blood tests, which indicated significant renal failure and hypercalcaemia.

Mr Cantillon said Mr Mullan either did not appreciate the significance of the results or did not act upon them. He had written to Dr Murphy on December 17th, 1997, indicating all blood tests appeared to be normal with the exception of the serum calcium level which Dr Murphy described as "raised". Mr Mullan recommended that Dr Murphy repeat the tests and that if the calcium levels remained high, Kevin should be referred to an endocrinologist. Dr Murphy said he never got that letter.

Mr Cantillon said independent experts retained by his side indicated there were a number of abnormalities in the blood test results (not just the calcium) which were suggestive of primary hyperparathyroidism and a loss of overall renal function in excess of 50 per cent.

Had Kevin been seen by an endocrinologist then, a diagnosis would rapidly have been made, he would have had surgery to remove the adjacent tumour and overactive thyroid gland and would still be alive today, Mr Cantillon said.

The results of the blood tests and the recommendation for follow-up tests were never communicated to Kevin, Mr Cantillon added.

Kevin therefore never knew he had abnormal calcium levels. If he had, he could have got treatment in 1997 and would not have suffered the pain he had experienced intermittently throughout 1997, 1998 and 1999, "and more importantly, of course, he would not have died".