O'Connor v The Health Service Executive & ors (Approved)

��� The first defendant was sued as the employer of all medical staff at Sligo General Hospital (SGH). The second defendant was employed by the first defendant as a consultant obstetrician. The plaintiff also sued the second defendant in contract on the basis that he was retained privately by the plaintiff�s mother and next friend for specialist obstetric treatment and advice. This contractual relationship was in issue.

��� The plaintiff issued a personal injury summons on the 5th May, 2011 against the HSE and Dr Carthage Carroll.

��� At paragraph (h) of the particulars of negligence the plaintiff alleged that the first defendant failed to notify the Second Defendant or the next appropriate Registrar or Senior House Officer or medical doctor of the entirely abnormal CTG results. In evidence the plaintiff�s expert obstetrician gynaecologist, Mr Roger Clements said that if a Caesarean section had been done by 6 am, his opinion was that the foetus would have been spared all or most of the brain damage and its consequences

��� At (ff) the plaintiff alleged that the first defendant, either through the midwifery or nursing staff or through the SHO (Dr Kondavetti), failed to inform the second defendant of the abnormal cardiotocograph (CTG) findings, in a timely fashion or at all.

��� The first defendant�s defence was twofold. It denied that all the injuries suffered by the plaintiff occurred during the attendance of the plaintiff�s mother at SGH and insofar as any injury was caused at SGH it alleged such injury was the result of negligence on the party of the third party. On 26 th March, 2012 the first defendant got liberty to serve a third party notice on Dr Kondavetti.