Husband tells of wife's 'painful' death following routine surgery
Saundra O'Connor was left in a vegetative state following a laparoscopy which was carried out by Dr Andrea Hermann. Photo: Andrew Downes
Wednesday November 25 2009
A FATHER of two young children told yesterday how his wife died following what was supposed to be a straightforward day procedure in hospital.
Dr Andrea Hermann, the consultant gynaecologist who performed the simple laparoscopy at the Galway Clinic in 2005, has admitted to the Medical Council's Fitness to Practice committee that her care of the woman amounted to professional misconduct.
The resumed hearing of the committee's inquiry into the circumstances surrounding the death of Saundra O'Connor (39), of Claregalway, Co Galway, heard yesterday that Dr Hermann had initially wrongly diagnosed Mrs O'Connor as suffering from polycystic ovarian syndrome. She simply had a cyst on one of her ovaries.
Eoin McCullough, for the Medical Council, said that the complaints against Dr Hermann were that she had failed to conduct appropriate investigations before carrying out a laparoscopy; failed to provide conservative management of the cyst; failed to provide for early administration of antibiotics, failed to appreciate the gravity of the patient's condition; and failed to provide appropriate standards of clinical judgment.
He added Dr Hermann had accepted that these amounted to professional misconduct.
In his evidence to the inquiry, the patient's husband, Martin O'Connor, said that following his wife's laparoscopy on March 25, 2005, he was phoned to come and collect his wife. She was drowsy and began to retch when he arrived at the Galway Clinic. Shortly afterwards, Dr Hermann arrived and said she would keep her in overnight.
When he returned the next morning, his wife was "doubled" over with pain. Saundra then vomited up brown fluid.
At 5.30pm on March 27, his wife was still in pain and could not even talk to her daughters. "That was the last time she spoke," Mr O'Connor said.
The inquiry was told her condition deteriorated overnight and Dr Hermann arranged for surgery. She was transferred to theatre at 5.45am and underwent another laparoscopy and a laparotomy. Large amounts of brown fluid were discovered in her abdominal cavity.
She was taken to the ICU and suffered multi-organ failure and a cardiac arrest. Her family later signed a Do Not Resuscitate form and she remained in a vegetative state until she died on February 19 last year.
Bleeding
In the second case against Dr Hermann, a teacher told of undergoing an abdominal hysterectomy without the presence of critical blood products to deal with her haemophilia condition. The 39-year-old mother of two said she suffered from Factor 11 deficiency, a rare bleeding disease.
Following the hysterectomy in March last year, the woman was released from hospital but became extremely ill and had to be admitted to University Hospital, Galway. A post-operative haematoma was found and she eventually recovered after 19 days.
Mr McCullough said in their assessment of her performance with this patient, the peer review group wondered why such a high-risk surgery was performed. Also queried was the absence of Factor 11 concentrate in the operating theatre.
The hearing continues.
- Brian McDonald
Irish Independent
