Mother 'wasn't in the right frame of mind' to be signing autopsy forms at Portlaoise Maternity Hospital

When Eleanor McCarthy's baby Timmy died on August 14, 2020, she was distraught.

However, when she was called a few months before what should have been his second birthday and asked to come back into the hospital to collect his organs, she felt traumatised and shocked.

After he had died, she had signed a consent form for there to be an autopsy.

Given the trauma she endured before his stillbirth at Portlaoise Hospital, she was barely cognisant of what she had actually signed.

“I do remember signing something, but nobody can be expected to be in their right mind after the trauma and tragedy I suffered,” she said.

Eimear didn't consent to an autopsy because she didn’t like the idea of her son being cut open — but she did when the coroner’s office got in touch and she thought it might help explain why he died.

“It was then explained to me about organ retention and stuff like that,” she recalled.

“But I wasn't in the right frame of mind to be signing forms, and I don't think any parent should have to."

Timmy’s burial took place at Portlaoise Cemetery shortly after his death, and was attended by close friends and family. However, the second burial was more low key.

“I went into the hospital and collected the rest of his organs, which were in a small brown box,” she said.

“Myself and my partner Eddie drove from there in silence, then we went to his grave and a grave digger had dug a small hole. We had arranged for a priest to say some prayers.

After a 2023 inquest involving the retention of organs, the HSE said Portlaoise Hospital does not carry out paediatric autopsies.

They added: “The (autopsy) is on behalf of the coroner and [Portlaoise] does not retain any organs after death.

“This is the responsibility of the pathologist conducting the post-mortem on behalf of the coroner.” 

Story courtesy of the Irish Examiner newspaper