The head of the HSE offered the grieving family of Eve Cleary, who died hours after she was discharged from University Hospital Limerick (UHL), free private counselling, but it never happened, the High Court has heard.
The mother of the 21-year-old said the family were delighted in a meeting with the new HSE chief executive Bernard Gloster on May 12th, 2023 – four years after Eve’s death – to be offered the counselling, but “nobody got back about it,” she said.
Melanie Sheehan Cleary, from Corbally, Co Limerick, told the court of how a systems analysis review took place into Eve’s clinical care, but the family were not asked to participate.
The Cleary family has launched legal proceedings against the HSE over Eve's death.
Under cross-examination on Wednesday, HSE counsel Simon Mills SC put it to Mrs Cleary that the systems analysis review concluded there had not been failings.
“Eve’s family were never interviewed. They did not have all the facts to review anything,” Mrs Cleary replied.
Eve died in the early hours of July 21st, 2019, just over three hours after being discharged from UHL, two days after she fell and hurt her leg.
Following the fall, Eve attended the hospital's Emergency Department, where she spent 17 hours on a trolley in a corridor before getting a bed.
Broken heart
Mrs Cleary told Ms Justice Emily Egan “there is no cure for a broken heart”, adding that the first 18 months after Eve collapsed and died “were horrific”.
Mrs Cleary told the court when Mr Gloster became chief executive of the HSE, she emailed him. She said his secretary made contact with her, and said Mr Gloster would love to meet herself and her husband, Barry.
At the meeting in May 2023, access to counselling was discussed, Mrs Cleary said, and Mr Gloster offered private counselling for which the HSE would pay.
An independent examination into Eve’s death was announced by Mr Gloster soon after that meeting. Mrs Cleary told the court that she was informed she was not allowed to contact Mr Gloster personally during the process of the independent examination.
The Cleary family counsel, Dr John O’Mahony SC, with Doireann O’Mahony BL, put it to Mrs Cleary that she was “barred from further communication”.
Mrs Cleary replied: “"hile the investigation was taking place, I could not contact him.”
Asked if Mr Gloster had indicated any solution they could seek if the HSE did not get back to them in relation to counselling, she said no.
“We were delighted to be offered it, and we were disappointed,” she said.
'Ridiculous'
Mrs Cleary told the court the independent examination sanctioned by Mr Gloser was halted in October 2023 because, she was told, they could not contact Dr Gerry Burke, who had been chief clinical director of the UL Hospitals Group at the time of Eve’s death. The court heard Dr Burke has since retired.
Asked by Dr O’ Mahony what she thought of the fact that nobody had a number for Dr Burke, Mrs Cleary said: “I found it ridiculous.”
Eve’s parents, Barry Cleary and Melanie Sheehan Cleary, along with Eve’s five siblings, all of Corbally, Co Limerick, have sued the HSE over her death and for mental distress.
It is claimed that Eve was allegedly allowed to develop a deep vein thrombosis (DVT), a blood clot in her vein, and that an opportunity had allegedly been missed at the hospital to put her on the anticoagulant Heparin upon admission.
The HSE accepts a formal risk assessment in relation to blood clots was not done, but has denied all other claims.
The HSE, the court heardm does not accept the failure to carry out the risk assessment was a breach of duty.
At the start of Mrs Cleary’s cross-examination on Wednesday, counsel for the HSE said he wanted to repeat how sorry he and the HSE's legal team were about Eve’s death, adding that he said all the staff at UHL are sorry Eve died.
He also referred to the July 31st, 2019, meeting between the Clearys, Dr Burke, and other hospital representatives 10 days after Eve’s death, in which Mrs Cleary says Dr Burke was crying and said Eve was failed from the minute she walked into UHL and in which she says Dr Burke apologised on behalf of UHL.
Counsel put it to Mrs Cleary that Dr Burke was not in a position to apologise if there had not been an investigation, and that Dr Burke’s apology was “in a sense of sorry for your loss”.
Mrs Cleary replied that what Dr Burke had said “he said on behalf of UHL”.
At the conclusion of Wednesday’s hearing, Ms Justice Emily Egan urged the parties to “engage”.
