Catherine Murphy (Kildare North, Social Democrats) | Oireachtas source

I echo the Vice Chairman's point. This is not what I expected to read. When Mr. O'Brien was talking to us this morning, he was very much focused on the communications strategy and how it was not carried out. He went further, however, and said that when he reread it, it did not cause him any serious concern. He also talked about the requirement to manage the situation when something like this occurs in order to ensure that widespread concerns about something like the cervical screening programme are not exacerbated, which is exactly what has happened. Given the notice on this matter, which he must have read, it is very difficult to figure out why a different type of action was not taken.

The final four bullet points on the last page of the first memo include the phrase "Pause all letters", which is the converse of what we have been told in respect of the communications strategy. Obviously, legal advice was then sought. Was that legal advice received? What was that legal advice? Was that legal advice to the effect that people should not be told? Can Ms Lennon confirm that? The memo also includes the phrase "Decide on the order and volume of dispatch to mitigate any potential risks". I presume that refers to the order and volume of the letters that were to be sent to clinicians in respect of making contact with the patients who had received false negatives. It is, therefore, about who would be told first and in what order people would be told in order to mitigate risk to the organisation and the programme. On what is termed the "reactive communications response", I presume there is correspondence or a body of documentation in respect of that response. It would be useful for us to see that because clearly it will have been worked through. The witnesses might tell us what kind of working through would have been done and who it would have been done with.

I would particularly like to know what constitutes a patient safety issue? That kept jumping out at me as it was being said over the past week or so. People said that it was not a patient safety issue. I am certain the patients do not feel that reflects their experience. Will the witnesses tell us how that is defined and where the judgment call is made in that regard? There are a number of questions there. Some are addressed to Ms Lennon, others may be more appropriate for Dr. Holohan.