A 17-week pregnant woman who was denied a termination after being told she was miscarrying died in a Galway hospital “in agony,” her husband said.
Two investigations are now under way.
Savita Halappanavar (31), an Indian native and dentist in Galway, died of septic shock a week after being admitted, the Irish Times has revealed.
Her husband, Praveen Halappanavar (34), who is an engineer at Boston Scientific in Galway, says his wife asked several times for her pregnancy to be terminated but was refused because the foetal heartbeat was present and they were told “this is a Catholic country.”
He said she spent two and half days in agony until the heartbeat stopped.
Read more: Undercover investigation of Irish family planning clinics reveals illegal abortion advice
The dead foetus was finally removed but the woman was rushed to the intensive care unit where shedied of septicaemia.
Her husband told the Irish Times there was no way to save the baby when they arrived at the hospital.
“The doctor told us the cervix was fully dilated, amniotic fluid was leaking and unfortunately the baby wouldn’t survive.” They told her they were waiting for the baby to die.
“Savita was really in agony. She was very upset, but she accepted she was losing the baby. When the consultant came on the ward rounds on Monday morning Savita asked if they could not save the baby could they induce to end the pregnancy. The consultant said, ‘As long as there is a foetal heartbeat we can’t do anything.’"
“Again on Tuesday morning, the ward rounds and the same discussion. The consultant said it was the law, that this is a Catholic country. Savita, a Hindu, said: ‘I am neither Irish nor Catholic,’ but they said there was nothing they could do."
“That evening she developed shakes and shivering and she was vomiting. She went to use the toilet and she collapsed. There were big alarms and a doctor took bloods and started her on antibiotics.
“The next morning I said she was so sick and asked again that they just end it, but they said they couldn’t.”
After the foetal heart had stopped the contents of her womb were finally removed and her husband said, “That’s the last time I spoke to her.”
That night the hospital called and “They said they were shifting her to intensive care. Her heart and pulse were low, her temperature was high. She was sedated and critical but stable. She stayed stable on Friday but by 7pm on Saturday they said her heart, kidneys and liver weren’t functioning. She was critically ill. That night, we lost her.”
The Health Service in Ireland is carrying out an investigation as is the hospital itself.
Mr Halappanavar cremated his wife in India.
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Switch to the desktop site to post a comment.shenae_elle | May 24, 2013, 10:49 PM EDT
Had the doctors forseen that she would die, they probably would have done a c-section. Obviously there was no indictation that she would. This is not a "catholic" or christian matter. In any hospital they would not kill a living fetus. It upsets me that Ireland and Catholicism is taking a hit for this... I bet if this situation happened in any hospital across the globe, they would have not aborted the baby. Plus, if you dont want to deal with Ireland's laws and religion... THEN DONT LIVE THERE. sad that the woman passed away, god rest her soul.
seanomelb | Nov 16, 2012, 07:16 PM EST
All the racist bigots agree with each other,Clowngate dickieknee and Bocktherobber.
Towngate | Nov 16, 2012, 09:08 AM EST
(fatally) Woundedknee: I am relieved you rarely agree with me. Could we make that NEVER please. To 'quote' Oscar Wilde: "Don't say YOU agree with me, for then I know I surely must be wrong!"
mamasnothappy | Nov 16, 2012, 01:43 AM EST
This was murder and murder should never be legal and mandated.
alisaann | Nov 15, 2012, 11:32 PM EST
imo, by the hospital NOT doing anything....they CAUSED this woman's DEATH.....why didn't they do a C-section, like many have suggested here?....the baby might have died any how, but the MOTHER might have been saved.....it's time to STOP allowing RELIGION to be the deciding factor. alisa
alisaann | Nov 15, 2012, 11:23 PM EST
that hospital and the doctors should be CHARGED with MURDER....they CAUSED this woman's death, by doing NOTHING....STOP ALLOWING RELIGION TO DECIDE SOMEONE'SE LIFE....they should also be SUED BIG TIME. ALISA
eiriamach | Nov 15, 2012, 02:46 PM EST
Elizabethbyrn34, your culture of "life" sent that young woman to her grave, and you're boasting about it? Demented!
WoundedKnee | Nov 15, 2012, 12:51 PM EST
Towngate, I rarely agree with you, but I concur in your estimate of poster bocktherobber. Bock the nut, I would say more accurately. Or Bockthenazi. Leaving this looney tune aside, I return to my thoughts on the anti-Catholic bigotry which accuses us Catholics of being obscurantist yet gives carte blanche to Hindhuism. The latter religion believes in reincarnation, plus a multitude of contending gods. I cannot condemn this, as none of us knows the truth of the afterlife, and I have no way of proving anything. But I do know that in this world many Indians practice selective abortion of female infants, a practice that Indian sociologists and demographers are increasingly concerned about. And before bockthenazi or his partner in the dopey duo, seanomel, jumps on me with their bigotry and race hatred, I stress that I am speaking generally, and not about the particular case in Ireland.
Elizabethbyrn34 | Nov 15, 2012, 12:19 PM EST
God Bless Ireland for standing there there ground on abortion. The girl and baby are both in heaven. We live in a culture of death which doesnt respect life any life. Saint Gianna Berta Molla Pray for Ireland. Saint Brigid pray for Ireland.
Towngate | Nov 15, 2012, 07:46 AM EST
Bocktherobber: Who rattled your cage? Don't play games,dear. Let us have the benefit of your inside knowledge! ~~~ As more information is brought to light in this case, the more cynical among us might be getting a whiff of poor auld Ireland being set up for a Compensation claim.......Much has been made of the husband's 'catholic country' statement which is a bit rich coming from a man whose own Culture is crippled by the Caste System and religious divisions in his own country. Btw: Spot on! Woodman.
mairint | Nov 15, 2012, 05:42 AM EST
Shame on the pro-kill babies campaigners. Using the tragic death of a young mother from toxemia as another way to force abortion into Ireland is positively disgusting. Toxemia can hit unexpectedly and it is rare today that the mother dies from it. Her death cannot be blamed on the baby for it too has suffered and died. Ireland has the most successfull natal results in the world and it was not neglect that caused this death. The big abortion bullies, Planned Parenthood, the recreational sex fans, the pop controllers (Soros, Gates, Blair, Robinson et al) through their cohorts in the UN/EU, will not stop pushing their agenda against the unborn child. They cannot tolerate that the Irish people have clearly stated, and repeated, that they do not want laws endangering the lives of their children. Get off your bandwagon and stop your dishonest victimization of the young woman in Galway, may she rest in peace. Notice how the usual opportunists jump also on the bandwagon to bash the Catholic church again. Do they not realize that they have had the privilege of being born and allowed to live? Hypocrits! Direct your sympathy towards the young man who has lost both his wife and child.
rainnnn | Nov 15, 2012, 04:03 AM EST
this is jus shameful in the name of religion a woman had to die..shame on the govt shame on the govt for not allowin abortion..my heartfelt apologies to the woman and her family..
Stiofain | Nov 15, 2012, 01:26 AM EST
Exodus 21:22
AlunPalmer | Nov 15, 2012, 12:11 AM EST
Black kohosh root will induce contractions.
Moirann16 | Nov 14, 2012, 10:36 PM EST
That is one of the saddest and most outrageous things I have ever read! And they call themselves Christian?? I always knew Catholics hated women but now we have more proof...
macalister | Nov 14, 2012, 10:08 PM EST
Why didn't they simply do a Cesaerean.The baby would probably have died,but the mother would have lived.
maylily | Nov 14, 2012, 09:35 PM EST
I was upset by the story,but what caused outrage was some of the comments here.A woman has lost her liufe and we are commenting about the country where she came from and her religion. For those who are ignorant, HIndus do believe inn re-incarnation,but they don't force their beliefs on others. This lady is more qualified than your average Irish and you accuse her of gender selection becuase she is an Indian! Be ashamed of yourselves. I am happy that I migrated to Australia and not to Ireland. I pity the man who lost his wife and child because he believd in rumours that Ireland has good health care system. Visit or read about India before commenting, you ignorant folks!
SheilaSB | Nov 14, 2012, 08:42 PM EST
How does the medical profession in Ireland distinguish between (1)premature birth, whether the fetus is viable or not, and (2) miscarriage? It would seem miscarriage, at least in the U.S., means the fetus, younger than six months' gestation, was non-viable and already has died. In the case of advanced pregnancy, delivery of a dead fetus at a viable gestational age would be a stillbirth. If the fetus still is alive, the labor and delivery are called premature birth. It seems the doctors should have tried to stop labor or should have delivered the live fetus to keep the mother from suffering so and to prevent death from septicemia. There also should have been intervention to save the premature infant as well. So much for the "pro-life" stance of the incompetent people involved in this tragic case.
Proud Canadian2 | Nov 14, 2012, 06:54 PM EST
I hope that the Pro-lifers and Catholics are happy about this. They just murded a women and Should be ashamed of themselves.
Bocktherobber | Nov 14, 2012, 06:34 PM EST
Where did you establish that the couple used the public system?
Towngate | Nov 14, 2012, 06:24 PM EST
A truly tragic case, reflecting badly on Ireland as a whole. I wonder if this presumably reasonably wealthy professional couple might have been better going 'private' rather than the notoriously unreliable Irish State Health Executive!
Bocktherobber | Nov 14, 2012, 06:13 PM EST
Jimgordo -- There is no limit to the ignorance of that comment. Are you not aware that the term consultant refers to the doctor in charge of the case, the person who makes all the medical decisions? For that ignorance alone, I think the rest of what you said can be safely ignored.
Bocktherobber | Nov 14, 2012, 06:08 PM EST
By the way, don't forget to support The Gathering. (Warning: not suitable for pregnant women).
jimgordo1 | Nov 14, 2012, 06:05 PM EST
OK folks, lets all take a deep breath and step back one pace. There is not one person here who was ACTUALLY there and can state what ACTUALLY happened, Everyone is operating on third-hand information. The FACTS in the case are: 1) A pregnant Hindi woman died in a Catholic hospital of septicemia. 2) The husband claims he was told the pregnancy could not be terminated because there was "fetal haeartbeat." Does anyone have substantiation of this statement from anyone on the hospital staff 3) Who is this "consultant" who "came around on rounds?" Since when do "consultants" "Make rounds?" From my experience with hospitals, doctors make rounds, not "consultants." Since when does a "consultant" make medical decisions? 4) Since "the cervix was fully dilated and amniotic fluid leaking," it sounds as tho birth was underway. If so, why didn't the hospital induce labor or at least deliver the baby be Cesarean? From my point of view, it sounds like a CYA situation. Plain and simple, somebody at the hospital screwed up royally. From what I understand, the "save the mother or the baby" syndrome is something out of the 50s. There is no reason with modern medicine that both mother and baby can't survive. That it was a Catholic hospital in a Catholic country and that she was Hindu are all totally irrelevant! Some body was in a CYA mood, plain and simple.
glengesh | Nov 14, 2012, 05:59 PM EST
We have our own Taliban in Ireland, women beware of Irish Catholic Hospitals.
glengesh | Nov 14, 2012, 05:55 PM EST
Tell me this Jesus!, are you happy at the death of this woman?,
Bocktherobber | Nov 14, 2012, 05:51 PM EST
Nothing unusual there. Bigots do that sort of thing all the time. It's the loudmouth, schoolyard bully response.
seanomelb | Nov 14, 2012, 05:44 PM EST
woundedknee accuses Bocktherobber of racism. It would be unny if it were not tragic.
Bocktherobber | Nov 14, 2012, 05:39 PM EST
WoulndedKnee -- You've just exposed yourself for the hate-filled xenophobe I thought you were. Unlike the national front, and unlike you, I welcome diversity in our country. If anyone has something in common with those ignorant Nazi thugs, it's you. A lovely young woman has died thanks to the sort of ignorance you and your kind promote. Be ashamed.
WoundedKnee | Nov 14, 2012, 05:28 PM EST
Enough of your stupid racism, bocktherobber. Go back to the British national front sites you like to hang around. Of course you're too stupid to understand the point I was making. As regards Irish immigrants, you're too stupid to know that most Irish-Americans oppose illegal aliens from Ireland in our country. Of course you don't do facts, do you, you just do bigotry and garbage.
adrienrain | Nov 14, 2012, 05:16 PM EST
Not long ago, a woman in AZ was admitted to a Catholic hospital who was going to die if the pregnancy wasn't terminated - which would mean that the fetus would also die. The nun in charge sensibly ordered that the pregnancy be terminated, and it was. For this, her bishop excommunicated the nun and ruled the hospital no longer Catholic. It seems that the church is becoming MORE fanatic about this, not less.
Bocktherobber | Nov 14, 2012, 04:59 PM EST
Nice one, WoundedKnee. Another opportunity to air your xenophobia. The woman's religion has nothing to do with what happened, but never let the facts get in the way of an attack on those you fear. What about kicking those Irish immigrants out of America while you're at it?
seanomelb | Nov 14, 2012, 04:54 PM EST
Cal_lan your argument in your last post is irrelevant to the article above.Howareya the church h believes the birth of the child is paramount.what the doctors did(or failed to do)in Galway is murdering a young woman to satisfy their religious beliefs
WoundedKnee | Nov 14, 2012, 04:47 PM EST
I have to laugh at the bigots here who whine about Catholicism being backward or obscurantist. The lady who died tragically was apparently a HINDHU. These folks believe in reincarnation, that after death we come back again and again, be it as a human or an animal. I sneer at no religion, but is this supposed to be more rational than Christianity? And I think that Cillowen's post below is on the money, tho I would not use his/her language. The fact is that the Irish ruling class opened up the country to Mass Immigration from countless countries and cultures, yet never made the slightest effort to think thru what was likely to happen. And it'll get worse.
Bocktherobber | Nov 14, 2012, 04:25 PM EST
Calon_Lan Have you no shame? You know full well that the young woman contracted septicaemia due to the 72-hour dilation which could have been prevented. Shame on you.
gobdawpaddy | Nov 14, 2012, 03:44 PM EST
I am not in favor of abortion but this underscores my contention that the majority of the Irish population live in the dark ages.
lokionline | Nov 14, 2012, 03:39 PM EST
I find the nitpicking around this story below to be stomach churning. This women died because of Catholic religion rules that hobble Catholic hospitals in Ireland and in the rest of the world.
howareya | Nov 14, 2012, 02:52 PM EST
I agree with Calon_Lan. I believe the Church has no issue with terminating a pregnancy when the mother's life is in danger. This was a grave lack of judgetment on the medical staff and they should be punished. RIP and prayers for the poor woman and her husband. And Rose, in a normal pregnancy, it is no longer just the womans body..there is a childs body in there too!
Calon_Lan | Nov 14, 2012, 01:59 PM EST
rose528, I was working in an office everal years back when a young woman no older than 25 years of age came in in a very distressed state who started shouting incomprehensibly about (we subsequently found out ) her housing conditions. Staff tried to calm her down but to no avail. She then took out a knife and cut both her arms from wrist to elbow. Two of us jumped on her and managed to stem the bloodflow before the ambulance got there to take her to hospital where I am happy to say she survived. Do you think we were right to intervene?
Bocktherobber | Nov 14, 2012, 01:52 PM EST
HermitTalker I see you came out of hiding. What a pity you didn't display a little bit of your famed humility instead of using this poor woman's tragedy to advance your agenda. By the way, you never did answer the question -- are you, or are you not a retired cleric?
rose528 | Nov 14, 2012, 01:45 PM EST
all I see is man has again put himself above women and said she has no control over her own body only man does. Religion should have no say in what happens. Religion should have no say in laws. What is one woman's religion is another woman's demon. NO one from doctors to legislators has a right to tell a woman what she can do with her body,
Calon_Lan | Nov 14, 2012, 01:18 PM EST
"bignervermo" Which part of "An abortion wouldn't have saved this woman's life" don't you understand?This woman died form septicaemia - blood poisoning. As has been pointed out the law does allow for direct intervention which looks in this case as it should have undertaken. So don't get abusive when your ignorance gets the better of you. No I don't think rape is God's will at all but this case isn't about me it's about misinformation being treated as the truth. Comprende my good friend?
bignevermo | Nov 14, 2012, 12:36 PM EST
Calon...you didnt set anything straight...This woman dies in agony...who cares about your stats??? This woman died because they would not abort a dying fetus for Jebus sake! WTH??? Why would anyone say that this man was correct? BECAUSE HE LIVED IT YA JACKWAGON! Hey but you probably think that if a raped woman gets pregnant that is Gods will right?
NiGhabhainn | Nov 14, 2012, 12:10 PM EST
Its already in our law that a medical abortion should have been carried out in event the miscarrying child is causing serious ill health/risk to the mother. However the doctors for whatever reason didn't have a clue regarding this. I personally don't agree with abortion, but in a case such as this there was no reason for them not to. I would hate to see it legalised in our country just to be used as flippant as the morning after pill. I know there are cases It wont be, but far too many where it would. If they just straightened out our laws to actually be of benefit to us, the doctors could have made the right decision based on the situation not on religion and that mother could been alive to grieve her loss, not her husband to greive both losses. Trying to save one life by killing two is not the answer and knowing one was already at deaths door..very sad. Peace Be upon them both
CitizenWhy | Nov 14, 2012, 11:58 AM EST
This is a good reason for US companies not to do business in Ireland. Now that it is known that the lives of their spouses will be put at risk, every company will be legally liable for anything that happens in the future.
Calon_Lan | Nov 14, 2012, 11:40 AM EST
This is another agenda pushing story which the ill informed are very quick - too quick to pick up on. Just to set the record straight here; In 1992, a group of Ireland's top gynaecologists wrote: "We affirm that there are no medical circumstances justifying direct abortion, that is, no circumstances in which the life of a mother may only be saved by directly terminating the life of her unborn child." (John Bonner, Eamon O'Dwyer, David Jenkins, Kieran O'Driscoll, Julia Vaughan, 'Statement by Obstetricians', The Irish Times 1 April 1992) When Dublin's National Maternity Hospital (where 10% of all births in Ireland occurred) investigated the 21 deaths of pregnant women there between 1970-1979, they found that not a single one of those deaths could have been avoided by abortion. (Irish Medical Journal 1982 vol. 75, pp. 304-306) Ireland, a country where the unborn child is constitutionally protected, has the lowest maternal death rate in the world. The UK, where abortion is available practically on demand, has over five times Ireland's maternal death rate. (World Health Organisation: maternal deaths, three-year average) Now with that weight of evidence why would anybody consider what this poor distressed husband is saying is correct?
pilib04 | Nov 14, 2012, 11:18 AM EST
This is the same craziness that Paul "lyin" Ryan and Todd "loser" Akin tried to make law in the United States. It's the Christian version of Sharia Law. The religious crazies tried to make all abortion illegal even when the woman's life is at risk or when she had been raped.
pilib04 | Nov 14, 2012, 11:14 AM EST
BogsideRabbit, you sure it's not your computer? your whining comes through loud and clear.
pilib04 | Nov 14, 2012, 11:12 AM EST
My sympathy to Praveen Halappanavar on the loss of his wife. This outrage just emphasizes the need for Ireland to end the war against women. Certainly if the woman's health is at risk there should be an exception.
cillowen | Nov 14, 2012, 10:49 AM EST
the life of the mother - maybe the system is overburdened with the massive amount of blowins that is to be eire's lot for ever more. slainte be damned.
srhcrrll | Nov 14, 2012, 10:46 AM EST
The death of Savita Halappanavar should provoke outrage in anyone truly concerned about the health of women. Hopefully the investigation will shed some light on why Mrs. Halappanavar was refused treatment for miscarriage, when this treatment is regularly administered in this country, and is allowed for by the law and by the Medical Council. The treatment she needed was legal, so there is no question that a change in the law is what is needed here. It is medical negligence that she was not treated urgently. In cases where the fetus is still alive, the Medical Council in part 21.4 of its guidelines for medical doctors states that treatment is allowed even if “there is little of no hope of the baby surviving”. The treatment that Mrs. Halappanavar should have received is legal in this country. In fact, it is standard medical procedure in cases like hers. That she wasn’t treated is a failure of the hospital and medical team, not a problem with the law. I suspect that the medical council will strike off one or more people because of this and rightly so. The greatest thing we can do to honour Savita’s life is to insist on obstetric excellence – that is what saves women’s lives, not abortion.
Jiggor28 | Nov 14, 2012, 10:21 AM EST
I am so shocked by the ignorance and unfettered superstitions imposed on the minds of religious people from their earliest childhood....even when they are educated in medicine, they can't seem to see commomn sence when scientific facts are glaring them in the face!!!! Isturbing, very disturbing. So, terribly sad!
bogsidebunny | Nov 14, 2012, 10:02 AM EST
Can't comment being blocked by I.C.
bogsidebunny | Nov 14, 2012, 09:54 AM EST
hermitTalker:before the vultures rush to condemn as usual. Are you for real? The woman is DEAD and you only care about quoting man's laws.Prayers will not bring this amazing woman back.I hate to say it, but you display elements of psychopathy.
CitizenWhy | Nov 14, 2012, 09:47 AM EST
n Exodus 21:22 it states that if a man causes a woman to have a miscarriage, he shall be fined; however, if the woman dies then he will be put to death. It should be apparent from this that the aborted fetus is not considered a living human being since the resulting punishment for the abortion is nothing more than a fine; it is not classified by the bible as a capital offense.
hermitTalker | Nov 14, 2012, 09:46 AM EST
before the vultures rush to condemn as usual. 1 The present Constitution allows in this rarest of cases, that when the mother's life is threatened an abortion is permitted. 2 The ban on elective abortions is based on Natural Law and not on the pope Bible or Church teaching (same as murder, rape and theft are illegal but also endorsed by Faith groups) 3. We hope that medical science, which is always imperfect, can determine whether the mother would die anyway from the E-Coli which was reported but not here, and the septicaemia. That is being studied by the competent authorities. This is no excuse for pushing any abortion laws or taking shots at the Constitution or the consultant. or "Catholic" Ireland which was not the issue. It calls for prayer and compassion for all concerned.
Portia777 | Nov 14, 2012, 09:44 AM EST
“this is a Catholic country.” Yes Roma still controls all INSTITUTIONS in Eire. The same old Eve ill mothers must suffer for their sins and of course she is Indian, so the racial prejudice and the gender discrimination are all laid open now to the world. This is Ireland people of the world. Nothing has changed here. We just put on a show to the world, but we are rotten to the core under Roman control.