The Medical Council will study in detail the recommendations of the inquest into the death of Savita Halappanavar.
The inquest returned a verdict of death by medical misadventure, and endorsed 9 recomendations including a call for the Medical Council to lay out exactly when doctors can intervene to save the life of the mother.
31 year old Savita Halappanavar died from septicemia at Galway University Hospital last October, following a miscarriage.
The Medical Council issued a statement following the inquest, saying it will give detailed consideration to the recommendations of the Coroner - and to any other relevant issues that have arisen during the inquest.
The Council said it's Guide to Professional Conduct and Ethics is a principle based document. It is designed to support doctors in their decision making in association with other guidelines produced by professional bodies and employers, and its guidance in relation to abortion reflects the current legal position.
In its presentation to the Joint Committee on Health and Children, the Council made clear its view that it is in the public interest that doctors have legal clarity when making clinical decisions. The Council will support the Government's processes for the development of legislation and regulations, and the Medical CouncilÂ’s guidelines would be reconsidered to reflect any change to the legal position.
The Pro Life Campaign has welcomed the recommendations of the inquest into Mrs Halappanavar's death.
Spokesperson for the Pro Life Campaign, Dr Berry Kiely described as "little short of shameless" the manner in which those seeking the introduction of abortion legislation based on the X case ruling have exploited the tragic death of Savita Halappanavar all along, claiming that the failure to bring in such legislation was what led to Ms HalappanavarÂ’s death.
"It is now clear from the facts presented at the inquest," Dr Kiely stated, "that a number of what the inquest terms ‘systems failures’ and communications shortcomings significantly delayed the moment at which the medical team recognised the seriousness of her condition and carried out the appropriate medical intervention."
"It is disturbing," she said,"that those calling for abortion legislation never point out that no medical evidence whatsoever was heard in the X case."
"The recent Oireachtas hearings, however, heard unanimous and authoritative evidence that abortion is not a treatment for suicidal ideation. Not only that, but the international evidence shows that legislation based on mental health and suicide grounds has invariably led to abortion virtually on demand."
Dr Kiely acknowledged how difficult and upsetting the experience of the Inquest must have been for SavitaÂ’s husband, Praveen Halappanavar. "I hope that the manner in which the Inquest was conducted has brought clarify to the events which led to the tragic death of his wife,"she said.
