March 11, 2009
When Kelly Hallihan's father received test results that showed he had cancer their family was devastated.
For seven years he believed he was cancer free until he learned he was one of the patients misdiagnosed by Dr. Rajgopal Menon.
Now he is part of a class-action lawsuit seeking compensation for victims.
But lawyers for the group sent a letter in February telling them the Miramichi Regional Health Authority wants to delay a certification hearing with Justice Jean-Paul Oulette to decide if Menon will be included as a defendant in the suit.
Ouellette's decision was expected to be released later this week, but the letter states the health authority wants to delay it.
It also says the health authority brought in insurance company HIROC to act on their behalf in defence of the lawsuit.
Hallihan said it's like they want to sweep the issue under the rug.
"You've got to be kidding me, really, because it's been going on for years."
One of the issues for Hallihan is that the government hasn't acknowledged anything was done wrong, unlike in Newfoundland where a similar situation lead to Premier Danny Williams issuing a public apology.
She said it wasn't just about money and wants to see the government admit there were mistakes made.
"Nothing's going to change what my father went through or what others went through."
Her father had three biopsies between 1999 and 2001 that all came back fine, but he later found out he had prostate cancer.
Since September he has had surgery to remove lymph nodes, a kidney and his prostate.
Because of his health issues, he hasn't been able to work since October and Hallihan said he thinks he deserves compensation.
"He's very angry. He's angry with the system," said Hallihan. John Gay is one of the lucky ones who was retested and came up cancer free.
He is still involved in the lawsuit and said the government should look for a quick solution to the problem and not force the victims to go through a lawsuit.
"We need closure. It's no use for the government to keep pushing and pushing because we're not going away."
The people involved are still suffering and delaying the issue will just cause more trauma and emotional worry, he said.
"We need closure. It has to end."
Although his tests showed he was cancer free, Gay said he suffered from depression as he went through the ordeal to find out if he had cancer.
"I've been through the mill. Emotionally it drained me." Hallihan said she hasn't been in touch with anyone else involved in the class action suit yet, but is trying to get people together.
"We need to get together as a group and rally in support of one another because if we don't then the government's just gonna do whatever they want."
No comments:
Post a Comment