Viewers of Thursday night’s RTÉ Prime Time were left shocked by its revelations.
The Department of Health has been using information from private doctor consultations to build dossiers on autistic children involved in legal actions against the State, Prime Time reported last night.
According to the programme, the information was gathered without the knowledge or consent of parents.
It is related to various high court cases taken against the Department of Health by parents of special needs children to secure suitable education for them.
Detailed information was gathered on at least four dozen cases taken by parents of autistic children seeking appropriate education.
Tonight on Prime Time @RTEOne 9.35pm#rtept pic.twitter.com/FOSUL5mhgP
— RTÉ Prime Time (@RTE_PrimeTime) March 25, 2021
The revelations emerged from whistleblower Shane Corr, a senior civil servant at the Department of Health.
Corr first became concerned when he came across documents detailing the treatment of vulnerable people, including a template letter indicating there was a particular approach to litigating special education needs cases.
In the letter, the department was looking for service updates from the likes of doctors, psychiatrists and social workers on children with special needs and their families who were taking cases.
Corr highlighted the existence of these detailed sensitive files – one of which included a video of a child having a “meltdown” – to his superiors last year.
He was later told an external investigator’s report raised no concerns, and as such went public in an effort to ensure those affected find out.
The show alleges the department sought regular service updates from other state agencies to keep tabs on outstanding cases without the families knowing this was happening.
Prime Time claimed building the database showed a “disregard for doctor-patient confidentiality”.
Corr said on the programme: “If you’re running a litigation case, it’s an extraordinary advantage if you know the mindset of the person who is entering into litigation against you.
“There’s no way any parents should allow that advantage to go to the department or the HSE.
“They couldn’t have known that these doctors were reporting back the information.”
“The only way I could walk away with a clear conscience was when those parents and those children knew what I knew.”
Shane Corr put his career on the line to disclose secret dossier practices in the Department of Health | #rteinvestigates | Read more: https://t.co/UaQwqGauws pic.twitter.com/9eG4Z8qNJs
— RTÉ Prime Time (@RTE_PrimeTime) March 26, 2021
In a a statement to Prime Time, the HSE said it was not aware of any of the specific cases but that it does “lawfully share information with the Department of Health on a range of issues, including the provision of health services to children with special education needs”.
It added it would “not knowingly share personal information in breach of doctor/patient confidentiality or otherwise unlawfully” and that it takes its “obligations in this regard very seriously”.
The Department of Health told the show that such behaviour between state agencies involved in court cases was “normal practice”.
It added that when it received the allegation of information sharing, it commissioned an expert senior council to examine the issues.
The department said that following this, the practice “had been found… to be entirely lawful, proper and appropriate.
Various politicians posted reactions to the programme last night online.
Sinn Féin leader Mary Lou McDonald wrote: “Bully boy tactics by the state against vulnerable children and their families. Shockingly hostile, intrusive and disrespectful attack on citizens who the state, state agencies and government have failed.”
Bully boy tactics by the state against vulnerable children and their families. Shockingly hostile, intrusive and disrespectful attack on citizens who the state, state agencies and government have failed #RTEInvestigates
— Mary Lou McDonald (@MaryLouMcDonald) March 25, 2021
Sinn Féin Pearse Doherty – who called for an urgent independent investigation into the matter in the Dáil on Thursday – thanked Corr for coming forward.
Thank you Shane Corr #RTEInvestigates https://t.co/xH4Tdxyj2Q
— Pearse Doherty (@PearseDoherty) March 25, 2021
Since the investigation by RTÉ, it is reported the Oireachtas Health Committee is looking to meet to seek answers from the Department of Health.
Meanwhile, the Data Protection Commissioner has confirmed they have contacted the Department of Health with a number of questions, which it is awaiting answers on.
You can read more about RTÉ’s investigation here or watch the Prime Time episode on the RTÉ Player.
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