CROSS EXAMINATION OF SAVITA’S OBSTETRICIAN

Her deposition detailed her dealings with Ms. Halapannavar from a routine
anti-natal visit to her hospitalisation later in October last year.

The Coroner Dr, Ciaran MacLoughlin asked if there was a system failure in the hospital’s policy of checking vital signs every four hours in a case where membranes have ruptured.

Dr. Astbury said there were readings over four hours but conceded that there were at times longer gaps in that process.

The Coroner also questioned an abnormal white blood count and Dr. Astbury said she wasn’t aware the white cell count was 16.9 and if she had been, she would have repeated it.

The Coroner concluded his questioning by saying there were two system failures involving checking vital signs in the case of ruptured membranes and an abnormal blood count not being communicated to the consultant obstetrician.

She is now being questioned by Praveen’s Senior Counsel Eugene Gleeson.

At the opening this morning Senior Counsel for the HSE Declan Buckley explained a suggestion from a staff witness yesterday that the records may have had entries inserted.

He said the entry on page 23 of the record was a curly bracket and that this bracket does not interfere with anything in the chart.

He added that nothing had been done with the record since November 14th when it was copied and placed in the hospital safe.

He said he asked who had done it and that the only explanation is that somebody who was reviewing the chart took a pen and marked these four areas.

He stressed it wasn’t deliberate and was not tampering with the record.

He added that the HSE internal inquiry did not begin until December 10th.