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King's College Hospital London, where Meadhbh was to receive her liver transplant

Health Minister launches inquiry into missed transplant op

Confusion still surrounds sequence of events that left 14-year-old patient without timely transportation to London for liver transplant surgery on Saturday.

Updated 13.22

HEALTH MINISTER James Reilly has announced that an inquiry will be set up into how a teenage girl missed out on a liver transplant last weekend.

The minister said in a statement that HIQA (the Health Information and Qaality Authority) will investigate the “failure in transportation facilities” that led to Meadhbh McGivern missing out on a liver transplant in London.

Meadhbh’s father has said the family is still “spinning” from the disappointment.

Fourteen-year-old Meadhbh received a call from medics at King’s College Hospital in London at 7.10pm on Saturday to tell her they had a donor liver match for her. Meadhbh, from Ballinamore, Co Leitrim, has acute liver disease and was waiting for 11 months for a suitable liver.

However, the transplant had to be cancelled when she couldn’t make it to the UK in time for the operation.

Meadhbh’s father Joe, interviewed by Michael O’Toole in today’s Irish Daily Star (print edition), said that a delay in securing air transport to London meant that she missed the 2am deadline for surgery. He said:

Somebody messed up somewhere along the line. Since August last year she has been waiting on a phone call.

Meadhbh was heartbroken when we had to tell her. She just hung her head and bawled.

Speaking again on RTE Radio1′s Morning Ireland today, Joe McGivern said that the family was still “spinning” after the weekend’s events. He said that he hoped it would not take another 11 months for Meadhbh to be given another chance for a liver transplant.

According to the family, they received the call from London at 7.10pm and it was confirmed at 7.50pm that it was going ahead.

However, the family were told at 9pm that an Air Corps helicopter was out on another air ambulance run and that the Air Corps jet was on its way back to Ireland. “I was told it was out of the country with the President at the time”, said Joe McGivern this morning.

The family were then told that they would be transported by Coast Guard helicopter from Strandhill in Sligo. “We got there for 10pm and had our life vests on at 10.30pm, ready to take off at 11.30pm”.

The Star reports that an Air Corps spokesperson said the Air Corps G4 jet had been offered for use when it returned to Ireland at 10pm but that the HSE had said it had made alternative arrangements.

A HSE statement this morning confirms that the transportation effort was called off at 11.23pm on Saturday. It is understood that because travelling from Sligo to London by helicopter would have taken around four hours – too late for Meadhbh to be delivered by the 2am deadline.

Neither the HSE and the EMSS (Emergency Medical Support Services), a company which co-ordinates transportation of transplant patients for the HSE, were available for comment as of this morning. Joe McGivern said that he had not had been contacted by either group. The only person who had called the family since their great disappointment was the liver transplant co-ordinator at the London hospital where Meadhbh had been to due to undergo surgery.

Minister Reilly said this afternoon that the inquiry is to clarify what happened – and to make sure “such a failure does not occur in future”. He offered his “deep concern and sympathy” to the McGivern family.

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    Mute Steve McMahon
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    Aug 22nd 2016, 7:27 AM

    Aged between 12 and 14 … Just shows evil has no age .. How can you protect against that

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    Mute Techguy.ie
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    Aug 22nd 2016, 7:32 AM

    the sad thing is he may not have willingly worn it -

    119
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    Mute Team Tariq
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    Aug 22nd 2016, 7:47 AM

    Adults should know better, but a kid that young has clearly been severely indoctrinated (as have all of Daesh’s foot soldiers). Tragic and heinous attack.

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    Mute Boganity
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    Aug 22nd 2016, 7:50 AM

    He may not have known what he was wearing

    61
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    Mute Veronica
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    Aug 22nd 2016, 8:19 AM

    There are a lot of reports of young children/teens being manipulated into performing suicide bombings, with their families and friends being threatened. I can’t imagine how difficult it must be to be put in that position.

    38
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    Mute Patrick J O'CONNOR
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    Aug 22nd 2016, 2:50 PM

    @Steve McMahon-By stopping immigration from this Ideology masquerading as a religion we can at least partially protect ourselves ,-but it’s coming our way for sure under existing conditions.

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    Mute Michael Garvey
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    Aug 22nd 2016, 8:00 AM

    Erdogan appears to have incredible investigative powers, has definitively solved this one a few hours after the event. Just like the coup, where the entire civil service was gutted a couple of days later.

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    Mute Patrick J O'CONNOR
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    Aug 22nd 2016, 8:37 PM

    @Michael Garvey-But Erdogan does have his admirers,-one being What-difference-does-it-make-now-Hillary Clinton!
    -
    —-”Clinton clearly views Erdoğan as a formidable leader, having described him in her memoir, “Living History,” as an “ambitious, forceful, devout, and effective politician.—”
    -
    http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/the-future-of-us-turkey-relations.aspx?pageID=449&nID=103093&NewsCatID=396

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    Mute An_Beal_Bocht
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    Aug 22nd 2016, 10:39 PM

    He prob is forceful, devout and ambitious.

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    Mute Dave O Keeffe
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    Aug 23rd 2016, 2:41 AM

    And now he has said they have no idea what age the perpetrator was

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    Mute Padraig
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    Aug 22nd 2016, 7:53 AM

    So Erdogan is saying this.Ya,I’ll believe it.

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    Mute Team Tariq
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    Aug 22nd 2016, 7:58 AM

    Equating the PKK to Daesh is a nice slice of doublethink and propaganda from Erdogan alright.

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    Mute Marie Gunbay
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    Aug 22nd 2016, 8:48 AM

    Wonder if the lady who is mentironed above is the mother who lost 4 of her children ….horrendous loosing one child is unthinkable but 4 …I have no words.

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    Mute Veronica
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    Aug 22nd 2016, 8:17 AM

    “The president said the Islamic State group was the “likely perpetrator” of the bomb attack, the deadliest in 2016, that targeted a celebration attended by many Kurds.”

    Yeah, because I hear that out of the two of them it’s IS that hates the Kurds the most, and not Erdogan. Uh huh.

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    Mute Gerry Fallon
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    Aug 22nd 2016, 9:43 AM

    These so called Islamists are the devil’s disiples,nothing else.They are not Muslims and have no right whatsoever to quote the Koran or shout allahu akbar! None ! So next time when young men and women are in their bedroom on their computer being brainwashed on the ideology that they should carry out their “duty “to Muhammad by murdering innocent people,realise that you are doing it for the Devil ok No one else.you are NOT Muslims. You are vicious murdering brutes with no rational cause and are not going to be with 7 lovely brides in paradise. You are just going to burn in hell.

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    Mute Patrick J O'CONNOR
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    Aug 22nd 2016, 3:09 PM

    @Gerry Fallon-The Koran the Islamists use to justify themselves is the same Koran that all other Muslim use and Muslims will not tolerate any revision of its contents saying that the commands of Allah are unalterable.
    All Muslims pay the Annual 2.5% ZAKAT Charity tax amounting to over $200 Billion and 1/8th of this is earmarked by Sharia Law for Jihad against non-Muslims and apostates. This is stated unequivocally in the Hanbook of Sharia Law called ‘The Reliance of the Traveller’ see below and link.All Muslims know where this money goes to and so all Muslims are complicit in Global Terror against non-Muslims and Apostaes.
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    —-”H8.17: Those Fighting for Allah/Category 7

    The seventh category is those fighting for Allah, meaning people engaged in Islamic military operations for whom no salary has been allotted in the army roster (O: but who are volunteers for jihad without remuneration). They are given enough to suffice them for the operation, even if affluent; of weapons, mounts, clothing, and expenses (O: for the duration of the journey, round trip, and the time they spend there, even if prolonged.—”
    http://islamexposed.blogspot.ie/2010/08/reliance-of-traveller-handbook-of.html

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    Mute Business Cat
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    Aug 22nd 2016, 11:45 AM

    Strange for ISIS to be attacking their biggest ally?

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    Mute prouesse f
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    Aug 22nd 2016, 4:05 PM

    One of their biggest allies, I think.

    Anyway, is their any rational thinking to be expected from them?

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    Mute conex
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    Aug 22nd 2016, 11:47 AM

    Vile pigs

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    Mute Marie Gunbay
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    Aug 22nd 2016, 6:50 PM

    Watched some of the funerals of the victims on Turkish TV would break your heart so many small coffins …..one of a 3 month old baby . The heartbroken mother who lost 4 of her children said that what stopped her from taking her own life to be with her children was that she had a child still living who needed her.

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