HSE to meet victims of CervicalCheck scandal critical of ‘disingenuous’ literature

The Health Service Executive (HSE) has agreed to meet victims of the CervicalCheck scandal and listen “very carefully” to their concerns after they accused the National Screening Service (NSS) of attempting to “rewrite history” in its new screening guide.

The CervicalCheck scandal came to light in 2018 after Limerick woman Vicky Phelan, who has cervical cancer and is terminally ill, settled her High Court case for €2.5 million after she was given incorrect smear test results.

Dr Gabriel Scally subsequently conducted an inquiry for the State, which established that CervicalCheck and its doctors failed to inform hundreds of women of an audit of their cervical smear tests after being diagnosed with cancer.

His inquiry found serious gaps in the governance structures of the screening services, and said the problems uncovered were the result of a “a whole-system failure”.

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As part of efforts to re-establish public trust in screening services this year, the NSS provided media outlets with a guide on “talking about cervical screening”. However, 221+, a support group for women affected by the scandal, has sharply criticised elements of it.

In a letter sent to the chief executive of the NSS, which has been seen by The Irish Times, the group said the NSS was engaged in a “blatant attempt to paint over the past”.

It said it wanted to “be able to express full confidence in screening” but that it could not do so while the NSS “refuses to recognise the mistakes it has made”.

“We want to have confidence in the screening service but, no matter what changes are made, it’s not possible to trust a system that continues to deny the existence of something that we personally experienced, as it is doing again through this document,” it said.

“The document is not something that exists in isolation. It is part of a sustained narrative from the NSS, ongoing in varied forms for almost two years, that seeks to deny and reimagine the Supreme Court ruling and the formal apology delivered to the women.”

In a subsequent public statement, the support group described the guide as “a wholly incomplete and selective description of what happened”, and called it “disingenuous and diversionary”.

In response to queries on the matter, the HSE said it would meet the support group and listen to its concerns.

“We issued a National Screening Service media guide to all media outlets in January 2022 as part of our work to increase public understanding of cervical screening,” it said. “We informed our stakeholders about the guide at this time and invited their feedback.

“We would never wish to add to the distress or trauma of anyone affected by cervical cancer, especially the people in the 221+ group.

“We work very well with the 221+ group and are currently collaborating with them as we create a new process whereby women who have been diagnosed with cancer after screening can ask to have their screening history reviewed in a protected, compassionate and non-adversarial way.

“We have received the group’s correspondence about the media guide, and we have offered and agreed to meet where we will listen very carefully to their concerns.”