No date for report into tragic death of Aoife Johnston at University Hospital Limerick

This story is carried on the front page of the Limerick Voice newspaper which is free inside this week's Limerick Leader. The publication is produced by journalism students at University of Limerick.

Three months on from the tragic death of Aoife Johnston, 16, at University Hospital Limerick, it is still not known when the investigation into her death will be concluded.

The much-loved teenager from Shannon is reported to have spent up to 16 hours on a trolley in the Emergency Department of UHL, before she passed away last December 19.

A Serious Incident Management Team was established earlier this year, to determine whether the teenager’s death was preventable or not.

When contacted about the progress of the investigation, which commenced in January and was expected to take three months, a HSE spokesperson said it had “no date for the receipt of a report”.

“A review team has been put in place in relation to the case, and the investigation is ongoing,” the spokesperson stated.

“On conclusion of the investigation, the review team will share its report with the patient's family. UL Hospitals Group does not plan to publish this report,” the spokesperson added.

When contacted about the investigation, a member of the Johnston family said they did not wish to make any comment. 

Speaking days after Aoife’s tragic death at UHL, Taoiseach Leo Varadkar insisted the investigation would be carried out thoroughly and as quickly as possible.

This, he stated, is what the Johnston family “expects, and that’s what they have a right to expect”.

Taoiseach accepts patients "not getting care they deserve" at University Hospital Limerick

Families within the Mid-West Hospital Campaign, who have also lost loved ones at UHL, are calling for increased transparency around investigation processes.

Melanie Sheehan, whose 21-year-old daughter Eve Cleary died shortly after being discharged from UHL in 2019, said: “When we met the Taoiseach, I asked for each case to get an independent investigation and that's what I'm trying to push for now for her.”