A young woman has died as a result of medical complications because she did not have scoliosis surgery when she was a child, marking a devastating escalation in what campaigners describe as failures in children’s healthcare.
Chloe Maher, 23, from Coolock in Dublin, died on March 4 in Beaumont Hospital. She is among a group of scoliosis patients who did not receive timely surgical interventions from Children’s Health Ireland (CHI) before they “aged out” into adult care. Many are now suffering from chronic issues, such as respiratory distress.
Orla Maher, Chloe’s aunt, told The Sunday Times that her niece’s death had destroyed their family.
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“We are heartbroken. Chloe couldn’t speak but she was always smiling. She brightened up entire rooms. A big piece of our family is now sadly gone,” Maher said.
“Chloe’s death was entirely preventable. She died in pain. People born with scoliosis are being let down by the government. They are left until it’s too late to operate and then they vanish from the system because they age out of child care services and into adult care.”
Chloe was a patient in Temple Street but never operated on. “They talked about surgery and then she aged out. My mom and Niamh [Chloe’s mother] would call and ask for updates but got nowhere,” Maher added.
When she was 20, Chloe was given a pre-operation assessment at the Mater hospital but then joined a waiting list where her condition deteriorated and her ability to breathe was eventually compromised. Before Chloe died, her family were told she could not be intubated because the curvature of her spine had made performing the procedure too dangerous. Her family say she was in chronic pain.
The Temple Street hospital in Dublin, where Chloe Maher was a patientAlamy
“Chloe never cried but we could tell she was in pain. She was admitted to hospital for a few weeks and then sent home. She was re-admitted a week later and we were told she would not be going home. She died that night,” Maher said.
Scoliosis, when left untreated during a child’s growth, is not a static condition but worsens with time and can lead to fatal complications in adulthood. Clinical experts warn that once a spinal curve exceeds 50 degrees, it moves from a physical deformity to a respiratory threat because as the spine twists, the ribcage rotates, crushing a victim’s internal organs and restricting the lungs’ expansion.
Today’s disclosure is likely to once again focus public anger on the government’s failure to provide timely surgery to children, teenagers and young adults who require scoliosis surgery.
Despite repeated promises from former health ministers, including Simon Harris who promised in 2017 that no child would be left waiting for scoliosis surgery, the reality on the ground remains a landscape of cancelled appointments and bureaucratic hold-ups.
Campaigners say dozens of children’s lives have been ruined or cut short because they did not receive surgery within the clinical window of opportunity.
Gillian Sherratt, whose son Harvey Morrison died aged nine after his name was cut from a surgical waiting list without his parents’ knowledge, said Chloe was unlikely to be the last person to die because they did not receive timely care.
“Harvey was a unique boy but his case was not unique. Young people who never got surgery when they were children are now running into serious health issues that could have been prevented,” she said. “We are going to see more deaths. These people should have been given operations when they were children.”
The death of Gillian Sherratt and Stephen Morrison’s son Harvey provoked anger and scrutiny of CHIBryan Meade for the Sunday times
Campaigners say at least five other young children died because they did not receive timely spinal surgery or due to post-operative infections and complications.
The government announced a statutory inquiry last year into the treatment of children with scoliosis and spina bifida by CHI and the Department of Health but no agreement has yet been reached on its terms. That inquiry was prompted by a string of alleged failures to provide proper medical care to children, gross negligence in the hospital group and a succession of cover-ups.
Dozens of children and teenagers have suffered life-changing disabilities or been left bedridden because they have not received essential operations as part of their health plans set out by CHI. The state’s healthcare provider for children is also accused of discharging teenagers who were waiting for vital surgical procedures, resulting in them being unable to walk properly or being left bedridden. Many families are preparing to sue the state.
“This is a deeply distressing loss for Chloe’s family, and our thoughts are with them,” said Úna Keightley, co-lead of the Spina Bifida & Hydrocephalus Paediatric Advocacy Group. “It raises serious concerns about how waiting lists for time-sensitive scoliosis care are being managed.”
She added: “We are aware of cases where children have been removed from waiting lists with no clear evidence that families were informed. At the same time, children continue to wait prolonged periods for care that is clinically time-critical. The forthcoming inquiry must examine systemic failures in waiting list management, communication, monitoring and access to treatment.”
The Department of Health said that it wished to extend its deepest condolences to the family and friends of Chloe Maher. A spokesman said it would not be appropriate to comment on any individual cases.
CHI was contacted for comment.