Naughten secures dil debate on xray misdiagnosis

Local TD Denis Naughten has secured an emergency motion to the taken in the Dáil this evening where he will be seeking reassurance from the Health Minister on x-rays read at Roscommon County Hospital and a number of other hospitals throughout the Country.

It comes after the Health Service Executive (HSE) confirmed it hs conducted a review of thousands of x-rays and other scans relating to three locum radiologists at seven hospitals nationwide, including Roscommon.

The HSE says the work is being undertaken to provide assurance to patients that their scans have been correctly assessed and reported.

Some of the reviews are continuing, and the period of time under examination goes back several years, including the work of some radiologists who are no longer working with the HSE anymore.

The problems came to light after concerns were raised by colleagues of the radiologists involved in the investigation.

The HSE say they are in contact with all patients requiring recall for follow-up investigations, and added that anyone who has not been contacted by one of the hospitals or their GP has no cause for concern.

Deputy Naughten said: “After the issue of delayed x-ray diagnosis in Tallaght a number of years ago, the HSE assured us that new procedures were now in placed to ensure that x-ray readings were not delayed or misread”

“So why has the system let patients down again?”

'Not only must the Minister reassure patients, but he must outline to the Dáil, why it took so long to identify the problem, and why, it seems, that patients are again finding out about such incidents through the media, rather than directly from the hospitals concerned'

'We also need action to ensure that such serious incidents cannot happen in future'

'While it is important to note that because of the linkage between Roscommon County Hospital and Galway University Hospital, there should be a low risk of a serious misdiagnosis, the fact remains that this is very concerning and anxious time for patients' concluded Denis Naughten