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Expert witnesses clear GP of mis-diagnosis

An Irish Doctor whose patient collapsed and died 12 hours after complaining of chest soreness has been cleared of poor professional performance.

It was alleged that Dr Michael Clarke had failed to carry out or arrange adequate examinations when treating Patrick Connolly aged 69, who passed away on the evening of February 25, 2011.

However following a five-hour hearing, the Fitness to Practise Committee of the Medical Council concluded that there was no evidence of poor professional performance on his part.

Two expert witnesses General Practitioner Dr Stephen Murphy and Professor Tom O'Dowd, were satisfied that Dr Clarke's examination of the patient was adequate in all circumstances.

The inquiry heard that Patrick Connolly had visited Dr Clarke's’ Surgery, in Castleblayney Co Monaghan, shortly after 9am on the day of his death, complaining of soreness in his chest and neck. Prior to this he was taking medication but was otherwise in good health.

Dr Clarke, who has been a GP in Castleblayney since 1989 and is also a general-practice trainer, said he asked Mr Connolly a series of questions in order to clarify the cause of his discomfort.

He noted that Mr Connolly's blood-pressure records on previous visits had been normal for a man of his age and that he had not complained of symptoms such as shortness of breath or tightness in the chest.

Dr Clarke added that he conducted an examination of Mr Connolly's chest and noted a swelling of the tissue in the left breast. He did not carry out a cardiovascular examination. He concluded the symptoms were musculoskeletal in nature and was treated for that. Mr Connolly returned home but suffered a cardiac arrest later that night and was then pronounced dead.

A post-mortem showed that he had suffered a massive myocardial infarction between 5 and 10 days prior to his death.

Giving evidence, Dr Clarke said it was possible that the myocardial infarction may have shown up on an electrocardiogram.

However, witness Dr Murphy said that while he would have considered it prudent to carry out a cardiovascular examination, Mr Connolly's myocardial infarction,  which has been described as ‘a silent heart attack’  may not have been detected.



For further information: http://www.independent.ie/national-news/doctor-cleared-of-poor-performance-3009213.html

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