Gardaí may get report on Neary

A report into how disgraced former obstetrician gynaecologist Michael Neary treated 62 of his patients, commissioned by the Patient Focus group, may be given to the Gardaí, a spokeswoman has said.

Sheila O'Connor said the report, being compiled by two British-based consultant gynaecologist obstetricians, would be published at the end of September.

She said the group had commissioned the report to help the women when they go before the redress board.

This was established by the Government to compensate Mr Neary's victims.

The women involved all had some of their reproductive organs, including their ovaries, removed by Mr Neary and it is thought most, if not all, had the gynaecological procedures carried out on them unnecessarily.

They had not come within the scope of an earlier investigation by Judge Maureen Harding Clarke whose terms of reference confined her to examining Mr Neary's obstetric patients only.

During her investigation, however, she came across a larger than normal volume of ovary removals and she told Patient Focus of these, which then urged the Government to include the women affected in the redress scheme.

All lodged claims with the scheme but given time constraints were unable get medical opinion as to whether the procedures carried out on them had been justified.

The redress scheme accepted their applications on the understanding that they would get medical opinions before their claims were examined.

British consultants Roger Clements and Richard Porter were commissioned by Patient Focus to provide these opinions.

Ms O'Connor said the consultants had interviewed each of the women over a four-day period recently.

"They will write individual reports on each of the women as well as an overall one which will give us a composite picture.

"We don't know yet what we'll do with the report, whether we'll show it to the HSE or to the gardaí. There may be a prosecution but we just won't know until we see the reports."

Gardaí are examining 10 complaints from former patients of Dr Neary.