The Former medical director of the National Haemophilia Treatment Centre yesterday rejected allegations that he handled certain cases of HIV infection inappropriately or insensitively.
On his final day of direct testimony to the tribunal, Prof Ian Temperley disputed the recollections of a number of patients and their next-of-kin and said certain criticism of him was unfair.
In relation to Mr Raymond Kelly, whose son, John, died from AIDS in 1994, the doctor said he hoped he would never have purposely made insensitive remarks which were attributed to him in witness testimony.
Mr Kelly had claimed that in January 1994, when John had liver jaundice and was admitted to Harcourt Street Hospital, Prof Temperley made casual remarks about his prospects of recovery.
Mr Kelly further claimed that when Prof Temperley gave John medication for TB and he asked about side-effects the doctor replied: "It will be bad for his liver, but sure his liver is shattered anyway."
Prof Temperley said he hoped he would not have used such an extraordinary phrase and he would never knowingly have tried to hurt anyone.
He noted that in order to assess the situation one had to withdraw a little from the patient.
The team was working under certain strains, he said, and had difficulty coping not only with John but with his father. Mr Kelly "made life difficult for us", Prof Temperley said.
Tension arose between the two over whether John should be given steroids for palliative care and also whether the treatment for TB was necessary.
Prof Temperley rejected the claim that John may have been used as a guinea pig or was experimented on.
He said John's problems were "enormously difficult" and it would have been nice to have got help and support from his parents, but "we had problems on that score, too".
He said he understood perfectly why Mr Kelly was angry. "He was desperately upset about his boy."
Prof Temperley added that Mr Kelly was mistaken in his view that John first received commercial concentrates in 1984 and was treated with a safer blood product, cryoprecipitate, until then.
The doctor said medical records showed John was treated with concentrates in 1982 and 1983 and cryoprecipitate in 1984.
In relation to Anne, whose husband, Dominic, was infected with HIV, Prof Temperley said he felt her description of being left alone to deal with the tragedy was not true or fair.
He added that there was no evidence to support Anne's claim that Dominic received concentrates as late as 1984.
Regarding Isobel, whose husband died in 1993 as a result of hepatitis C infection, the doctor said he felt "quite hurt" by her criticism of the treatment facilities.
