Man and wife sue hospital over failed kidney transplant

A couple has sued Beaumont Hospital over a failed transplant of one of the wife's kidneys to her husband.

Pat Ryan had a successful transplant days later from a deceased donor but said it was a "huge blow" to his wife Denise he had "another person's kidney in me".

Denise Ryan (51) had in 2014 donated a kidney to her 56-year-old husband, then 22 months on the transplant waiting list, but that transplant failed.

She claims she now suffers post-traumatic stress disorder, is without a second kidney and had expected that kidney to live on in her husband.

Mr Ryan told the High Court on Friday he was very grateful for the second transplant but his wife was “devastated”.

“It was a huge blow to her I had another person’s kidney in me.”

The couple, of Ballypatrick, Clonmel, Co Tipperary, has sued the Beaumont Hospital board over their care when Ms Ryan's kidney was removed and placed in her husband during a transplant operation at the hospital on January 20th, 2014.

It is claimed Mr Ryan was provided with an organ that was not effective and and underwent mental distress and an alleged unnecessary and failed operation.

Depressed

On Ms Ryan’s behalf, it is claimed, following the operation she was advised the transplant did not go well and an alleged mismatch in size of the kidney was at issue. It is claimed she became depressed and suffered grief for the loss of an organ.

The hospital denies the claims and denies any negligence in relation to the procedure.

Opening the case, Jeremy Maher SC, instructed by solicitor Cian O’Carroll, said Mr Ryan had kidney problems, had been on dialysis and was on the transplant waiting list.

He had “waited and waited and waited” for a phone call telling him there was a matching donor kidney but it never came, counsel said. Ms Ryan was a suitable match. He said a living donation was a routine procedure but one of the disadvantages was the loss of the kidney for a donor and the effects of failure if the transplant was not a success.

‘Devastating’

“Transplant failure can leave the donor suffering psychological injury. It has happened in this case with devastating consequences for the Ryans,” he said.

Ms Ryan’s left kidney was put in her husband’s right side and when she woke up after the operation, she was told there had been difficulties and that came “as a complete shock and caused immediate anxiety”, counsel said.

“Denise felt a part of her died. She was concerned her husband was going to die. She felt she had let him down. She thought her kidney was going to live on in her husband.”

Four years on, the couple remain at a loss to know exactly why the first transplant failed, Mr Maher said.

It was their case that it should not have failed as there were no contra-indications. Counsel said Mr Ryan underwent two unnecessary procedures and the case will examine the positioning of the kidney in him.

Two hours

In evidence, Mr Ryan said, when he woke up after the first transplant, he was told the kidney was “anything but good to go” and the team had spent two hours and did their best.

“I did not think it was good news.”

His wife was devastated and upset but, after the second transplant, he felt good and described the feeling like “a foal racing away in a field”. While his wife felt she had failed, he felt she “got the ball rolling”.

He never got an explanation after the failed transplant – there was a meeting, and they were told it could be a number of things, he said.

The case continues before Mr Justice Kevin Cross on Tuesday.