Green MP Jan Logie speaks up about HDC closing surgical mesh complaint. Photo / File
Green MP Jan Logie says she will be a voice in Parliament for women with "heart-breaking" surgical mesh claims.
Her promise comes after the Herald on Thursday exposed an investigation into claims women continue to be harmed by the use of surgical mesh.
Logie said she would personally respond to Sally Walker, whose bladder was removed and vagina sewn closed after a surgeon allegedly incorrectly implanted mesh into her body.
Walker - a 73-year-old former Karitane nurse - complained to the Health and Disability Commission (HDC) two years ago but earlier this month her case was closed because the accused gynaecologist - Dr Paul Macpherson, who has since retired - was unable to respond.
"The mesh was rotting inside of me," Walker told the Herald.
This afternoon Logie said: "Based on what I do know from the reporting it does not look like this situation should be grounds for closing a case.
"Whenever something goes wrong and someone is hurt or injured, there should always be a path to redress and a resolution for those who have suffered," Logie said.
She said putting a patient's needs and wellbeing first was a critical part of making sure the path to healing and justice did not make a person's suffering worse.
"But, people-centred approaches aren't just a vital part of responding to harm; putting a person's needs at the centre of the care they receive can also prevent harm from occurring in the first place."
Logie said every single mesh case she learnt about was heart-breaking.
"Harm caused by mesh can be life changing and include chronic pain, infections, and organ damage. People want to know that the health system is going to make them better, not add further to the pain and suffering they have already experienced."
"I want people to know that if they ever experience harm or feel their needs are not being prioritised, then we can be a voice for them in Parliament," Logie said.
The Health and Disability Commission sought independent advice on Walker's case from a urologist. However, the agency is refusing to release the urologist report to Walker after closing her case.
Health and Disability Commissioner Morag McDowell said she had a legal responsibility to make sure a person who was complained about had a proper opportunity to respond, and she was obliged to adhere to principles of natural justice.
"There are some circumstances where I am unable to investigate a complaint. I acknowledge this can result in lack of closure for some people, and I appreciate how distressing that might be," McDowell said.
"I'd like to assure New Zealanders I remain focused on the surgical mesh issue. My office remains involved in the Surgical Mesh Round Table, and I have written to all DHBs and private surgical hospitals reminding them of their informed consent obligations. I continue to monitor the progression of recommendations made by a Ministry of Health report."
National's health spokesperson Shane Reti said it was "totally unacceptable"the commission was refusing to release Walker's independent report.
Reti said Associate Minister of Health Ayesha Verrall "absolutely" needed to front the surgical mesh claims.
"This is an area that continued to need scrutiny in my view," Reti said.
In a media stand-up on Thursday, Verrall said she understood the HDC was still "considering" Walker's case.
However, when the Herald told her Walker's case had been closed by HDC, she said: "I haven't seen the specifics of that particular case so I'll have to look back at that."
Since yesterday's investigation was published, dozens more women have come forward with claims they too were harmed by mesh procedures.
"I sit here crying while reading your article, as I'm one of these women trying now to make a decision to have my bladder and urethra removed. I see the psychologist today on a journey to making this decision," one woman emailed the Herald.
The Herald will continue to follow up the stories.
Earlier this month, the commissioner told the Herald the surgical mesh stories she was aware of were "incredibly harrowing", and the complaints were only a small snapshot of those harmed.
In a speech at a medical conference last month, McDowell compared the harm from surgical mesh outlined in the report to the so-called "unfortunate experiment" at National Women's Hospital, which led to the 1988 Cartwright Inquiry.
"Its content resonates with the Cartwright inquiry, which included concerns about the informed consent process and the extent to which relevant information was or was not conveyed to patients to allow an informed choice," McDowell said.
McDowell said she understood the decision was difficult for Walker to accept but she could not discuss the details.
"The decision to close this case uses the New Zealand Bill of Rights Act 1990, the Health and Disability Commissioner Act 1994 and principles of natural justice as its basis.
"I am unable to release the expert adviser's report until other parties have been consulted."
• In Her Head is a Herald campaign for better women's health services. Health reporter Emma Russell investigates what's wrong with our current system, and talks to wāhine who have been made to feel their serious illness is a figment of their imagination or "just part of being a woman".