How events unfolded . . .
1998 OCTOBER:Two midwives working in the maternity unit of Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital, Drogheda, reported that it was their perception that Dr Michael Neary was carrying out an unusual number of Caesarean hysterectomies. A meeting was arranged between senior management of the North Eastern Health Board and Dr Neary to discuss their concerns.
Dr Neary was asked to take administrative leave for two weeks so that the allegations could be further investigated. After the two weeks Dr Neary sought to return to work. The health board had been checking records in the meantime and had serious misgivings about allowing him to return to work. Dr Neary argued it would be unprecedented for a consultant obstetrician to be suspended before a peer review.
NOVEMBER:Three Dublin-based obstetricians were asked by the Irish Hospital Consultants Association (IHCA) to conduct the peer review. They were Prof Walter Prendiville, Dr Bernard Stuart and Dr John Murphy. They interviewed Dr Neary, looked at the records of nine patients and filed reports within days to Finbarr Fitzpatrick, secretary general of the IHCA. Their reports said Dr Neary had no case to answer and Dr Neary returned to work.
DECEMBER 8th:The North Eastern Health Board received a report from Dr Michael Maresh, an obstetrician in Britain, whom it had also asked to review the same nine cases. He stated he had major concerns about Dr Neary continuing to practise.
DECEMBER 11th:Dr Neary was instructed by the health board to take immediate administrative leave.
DECEMBER 14th:Full details of the nine cases reviewed by Dr Maresh were published in The Irish Times.
1999 FEBRUARY 5th:Dr Neary was suspended from practising medicine by the High Court on foot of an application by the Medical Council
2000 JUNE:The Medical Council began a fitness to practise inquiry into Dr Neary.
2003 JULY:Dr Neary was found guilty of professional misconduct by the Medical Council and struck off the medical register.
NOVEMBER:Judge Maureen Harding Clark was asked to chair an inquiry into what happened at the Lourdes hospital and how Dr Neary had been allowed to carry out Caesarean hysterectomies over a prolonged period without anyone shouting stop.
2004 APRIL:The Lourdes Hospital inquiry was officially established.
2006 JANUARY:The Lourdes hospital inquiry report was published. It referred to the reports prepared by the three obstetricians back in 1998 exonerating Dr Neary. It said the three obstetricians "have had serious regret for their part in producing these reports, which were motivated by compassion and collegiality".
MARCH:It emerged that a complaint to the Medical Council from Patient Focus, which represents women damaged by Dr Neary, about the three obstetricians had been referred by the council to its fitness to practise committee.
NOVEMBER/DECEMBER:The Medical Council's fitness to practise committee held an inquiry into the three obstetricians and found them guilty of professional misconduct
2007 FEBRUARY:A meeting of the full Medical Council agreed they should be found guilty of professional misconduct and decided to publish transcripts of the fitness to practise inquiry hearings into their conduct, which were held in private. Those transcripts were published yesterday.