Head of HSE still won’t quit despite Vicky’s call
TONY O’Brien was clinging on as the head of the scandal-hit HSE yesterday, despite a direct demand from cancer sufferer Vicky Phelan that he resign.
Instead, Mr O’Brien stepped aside – but only temporarily – from his other job, as a director of the US contraceptive giant Evofem.
He has taken ‘leave of absence’ from the €50,000-a-year directorship until he leaves his HSE post in August. But while Mrs Phelan once again called for Mr O’Brien’s resignation – saying he must go if women are to maintain confidence in the cervical screening service – the HSE chief was being defended by Simon Coveney in the Dáil.
The Tánaiste said it would be better if Mr O’Brien, with his expertise, remained in his post to address the fall-out from the affair, rather than losing his job to satisfy those demanding a head in pursuit of accountability.
This is despite the fact CervicalCheck clinical director Dr Gráinne Flannelly has already resigned. Mr O’Brien was head of the cervical service when a decision was taken to outsource screening of smear tests to the US.
Mrs Phelan said in a tweet yesterday that she was still publicly calling for the resignation of Mr O’Brien. She wrote: ‘Heads absolutely need to roll, in particular Tony O’Brien’s, who has shown nothing but arrogance and who is more concerned with defending the indefensible than doing the right thing.’
Asked if she felt Mr O’Brien was staying as he wanted his pension, she added: ‘Pity he wouldn’t spare a thought for the 17 women who did not live to draw their pensions.’ Mrs Phelan also demanded that hearings by the expected Commission of Investigation into the scandal should be held in public, which can’t happen under the current legislation.
Mr O’Brien, who has admitted partial responsibility for the debacle as head of the HSE, but rejects the contention of full responsibility, says he only learned the details of Mrs Phelan’s court case in a report on the RTÉ News app on his mobile phone.
However, he was stoutly defended yesterday by senior medical colleagues and friends in the health service and Government.
Dr Tony Holohan, chief medical officer in the Department of Health, said he had attended the Oireachtas Health Committee with Mr O’Brien on Wednesday, and that Mr O’Brien had addressed the question of whether he should remain in his role ‘substantially’.
He said: ‘Tony O’Brien was at the committee with me... he addressed that question very substantially and made clearly a commitment
‘Has significant understanding’
that he was going to stay for the remainder of his term and focus substantially on helping to resolve this crisis. I am confident that he can help to resolve this crisis.’
Donal Buggy, head of services and advocacy with the Irish Cancer Society, said he doesn’t believe that at this stage ‘there is any merit’ to Mr O’Brien resigning.
He said the HSE director general ‘has significant understanding and knowledge of the screening services’ and that he has a ‘lot to offer over the next 12 weeks in resolving some of the very serious issues’ which have come to light ‘as part of this audit.’
But Fianna Fáil frontbencher Dara Calleary told the Tánaiste in the Dáil yesterday: ‘There is no sense being given to women of this country that somebody in Government or the HSE is in charge of this situation. There is no sense that somebody understands the trauma being experienced by women in terms of the lack of information and the concerns they and their families have.’
And he asked: ‘Does the Tánaiste have confidence in the ability of the director general of the HSE to restore confidence in our cancer screening programme?
‘Does he agree that, given the scale of the job to restore that confidence, the director general should step aside from every other interest in order that he can concentrate fully on that job?’
Mr Coveney said there had been a ‘disgraceful breach of trust between thousands of women and the State through the HSE’ as to the healthcare they rightly expected to be provided.
He added: ‘Tony O’Brien has confirmed to the [Health] Minister [Simon Harris] that he will take a leave of absence from any involvement outside the HSE between now and when he steps down from the HSE so he can focus on contributing in a positive manner to
Heads absolutely need to roll, in particular Tony O’Brien’s, who has shown nothing but arrogance and who is more concerned with defending the indefensible than doing the right thing
the work that needs to be done to put this right. This is the appropriate course of action and the decision for him to make.’
On Wednesday, the Dáil heard that Mr O’Brien was spending five hours of his spare time each month working for Evofem in return for more than €50,000 annually in director’s fees. The company has floated on the US stock exchange, and Mr O’Brien, who joined in January, has €450,000 in groundfloor stock options.
Taoiseach Leo Varadkar told TDs Mr O’Brien was taking annual leave to attend board meetings.
However, Mr O’Brien confirmed to the Oireachtas Health Committee he would not now be attending next Tuesday’s scheduled AGM of the company in San Diego.
The HSE chief also came under fire yesterday from Pearse Doherty. The Sinn Féin TD quoted Mr O’Brien’s evidence to the committee, in which he said: ‘As head of the HSE, I have to recognise that those who cocked-up, to use the Taoiseach’s phrase, were in the organisation but I did not personally make that cock-up so I cannot take full responsibility for it.’
Mr Doherty thundered: ‘That is an absolute disgrace. One can delegate authority, but one cannot delegate responsibility. Either someone is held to account or the usual pattern of unaccountability will continue year after year, scandal after scandal.
‘The buck stops with someone. That person is Tony O’Brien who oversees the HSE. Taking temporary leave of absence from the board to which he was appointed in the US does not go far enough.
‘It just reiterates and confirms our view of the inappropriateness of the Minister for Health sanctioning Tony O’Brien’s participation when there was a clear conflict of interest in the first place.’