Camhs whistleblower to take legal action against HSE over treatment

The whistleblower who revealed the over-medication of children in south Kerry mental health services is taking legal action against the Health Service Executive over the treatment he received.

Consultant psychiatrist Dr Ankur Sharma has filed a complaint to the Workplace Relations Commission (WRC) and is considering a personal injuries action, his solicitor said.

Keith Rolls of Coleman Legal said the Indian-born doctor, who is now living in the UK, had been put through a very difficult time while working in Ireland and does not intend to work in the country again.

Dr Sharma’s departure was a “huge loss” to the HSE and to parents of children with mental health issues, the solicitor said.

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The consultant psychiatrist intends to end his registration with the Irish Medical Council and is withdrawing from the College of Psychiatrists of Ireland, such is his disillusionment after working in the HSE.

Last month, he told The Irish Times he had been sidelined and ostracised in the health service after revealing the over-medication and misdiagnosis of children attending South Kerry Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service (Camhs).

In January, a report found 240 children in south Kerry had received substandard care, and 46 had suffered significant harm, largely as a result of the actions of a single doctor.

Dr Sharma had raised concerns about their treatment immediately on starting work in the service in 2020.

The Government has since established a compensation scheme for these families, which is expected to cost tens of millions of euro.

Mr Rolls said the problem of inappropriate prescribing of anti-psychotic medicine was not confined to south Kerry.

The same junior doctor who had worked there had also worked in north Kerry, he pointed out, while families from other parts of the country have also been in contact with his legal firm.