The Dublin city coroner may take the "unusual" step of recalling witnesses who have already given evidence at an inquest into the death of a baby delivered by water birth in Cavan General Hospital to allay concerns raised by the baby's family, an inquest has heard.
Harry Eccles died after his mother, Gina Eccles (24), gave birth to him at the Cavan hospital on February 26th, 2006, in a birthing pool with the aid of a midwife.
Barrister for the Eccles family Sara Antoniotti yesterday told the coroner that the Eccles family were unaware of the pathologist's findings that Harry died as result of drowning at the time when many of the people who assisted in his birth were giving evidence, (including midwife Elisabeth Loughran,) at an adjourned inquest on May 8th.
As a result the family did not ask the questions they would have asked had they been aware of the pathologist's findings and wanted an opportunity to ask those questions, the court heard.
"The Eccles family knew nothing about a proposed drowning in a birthing pool - his mother Gina had thought he died as a result of a genetic disorder. You can imagine the horror and shock for the family when they discovered this," said Ms Antoniotti.
"This is a most unusual case. It's very traumatic for the family and needs to be investigated further. It's not only to allay the fears of the family, but the fears of the general public," she said.
Pathologist Dr Peter Kelehan, told an inquest on May 8th that Harry had died of "an acute near drowning event" caused by the inhalation of fresh water, but the family have "concerns as to the cause of death", the court heard yesterday.
Dr Alan Finan, consultant paediatrician at Cavan General Hospital, who treated Harry three hours after his birth, previously told the inquest he believed the baby had experienced a "neurological insult" before delivery.
Coroner Dr Brian Farrell told the court he would reserve his position on the recall of witnesses until a further hearing for mention in September.
"I'm sympathetic to both points of view and I'm concerned about having to call witnesses back, but issues have arisen," he said.