An investigation is under way into a fourth baby death in the space of 30 months in one of the country’s smaller maternity units.
The investigation has been called following the death of a baby in Cavan General Hospital yesterday. It is understood the baby died following an emergency Caesarean in the maternity unit.
The HSE last night confirmed that a death had occurred, but was unable to give any clinical details.
A spokeswoman pointed out infant deaths can occur for a variety of reasons and do not necessarily involve medical misadventure.
Cavan was the subject of controversy last year following the death of two infants in the hospital in 2014 and the death of another baby in November 2012.
Former minister for health James Reilly said last May he would instruct the Health Information and Quality Authority (Hiqa) to review maternity services at the hospital .
Dr Reilly said he wanted Hiqa to pay “particular attention” to maternity services at Cavan in addition to the investigation it was already undertaking into Midland Regional Hospital in Portlaoise.
“I want to reassure people, especially women who are expecting a child, that there is a safe service in Cavan but nonetheless, given the events of the past 18 months, I want to be doubly reassured that there isn’t more to be done in order to make the service even safer,” Dr Reilly said when announcing his intention to involve Hiqa.
However, no formal order was made to Hiqa to investigate the unit and no review was carried out.
Hiqa’s report on Portlaoise, published last week, said it could not conclude services at the hospital were safe. Members of its investigation team said the problems that arose in the unit were were to be found in other hospitals across the State.
The highly critical report is to be discussed at the Oireachtas health committee today, while Minister for Health Leo Varadkar is due to visit Portlaoise hospital and meet some of the families who lost babies there.
Mr Varadkar told the Dáil yesterday he was appalled patients in Portlaoise were not treated with respect, care and compassion in the hour of their greatest need.
He said many aspects of the report disturbed him and patients and families were treated dreadfully and sometimes inhumanely.
