State to deliver 'bespoke response' to calls for public inquiry into surgeon's decades of abuse
- Dignity 4Patients
- Jul 29
- 3 min read
By Saoirse McGarrigle - The Journal - 30.07.2025 - [Dr. Michael Shine] - [IRELAND] THE HEALTH MINISTER has told victims of paedophile Michael Shine that she is working to deliver “an appropriate and bespoke response” to address serious issues raised around his abuse.
In a letter seen by The Journal, Jennifer Carroll MacNeill pledged that she is “committed to engaging with Government colleagues” on the matter.
This letter is in response to a comprehensive submission made to the Minister by advocacy organisation Dignty4Patients last month arguing for a public inquiry.
More than 380 men have to date made allegations against the disgraced surgeon who worked at Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital in Drogheda for 30 years. During that time, he also operated a private clinic in the County Louth town.
The proposal submitted on behalf of survivors of his abuse last month outlined why a Commission of Investigation should be conducted to investigate longstanding claims that authorities were aware of the abuse for decades.
This document included a timeline of the harrowing history of abuse at both Our Lady of Lourdes and his private surgery, with the first report made to hospital authorities as far back as 1977.
In her response, the Minister wrote:
“The issues set out in the paper provided are now being considered by my officials and I will engage further with my Government colleagues, including the Taoiseach, Tánaiste and others, to see what actions are appropriate and how best to respond to the issues raised.
“I am committed to engaging with my Government colleagues to identify an appropriate and bespoke response to the issues raised by and the needs identified by Dignity4Patients on behalf of the victims and survivors of Michael Shine.”
She also described Shine’s crimes as “an inhumane betrayal by him of his patients,” adding that the “Government has the deepest concern for all victims of Michael Shine”.
Proposals expected in autumn
In spite of the hundreds who have come forward, only nine of these men have had successful prosecutions in the criminal courts.
In November 2017, guilty verdicts for Shine on three counts of assaulting two teenage patients on dates between 1974 and 1976 were handed down by a jury. However, he was granted bail pending an appeal against the conviction.
Shine was eventually jailed for four years in 2019 following a separate case for abusing seven boys in his care over a period of three decades and was released in February 2022.
CEO of Dignity4Patients Adrienne Reilly told The Journal the group were delighted at the swift response from the minister, adding:
“We really hope that they are committing to a statutory inquiry.
“We look forward to their proposals in the autumn and hope that things move swiftly, because we have already provided the Government with all of the information that they need in that proposal.”
Reilly said that the allegations against Shine “span a broad timeline—from the beginning of Shine’s medical career in the 1960s through to the 1990s, when he was permitted to retire on full pay”.
She says that by the time of his retirement, at least 40 victims were known to the North Eastern Health Board, An Garda Síochána, and other relevant institutions. Dignity4Patients represents the more than 380 men who say that they were abused by Michael Shine.
The group is campaigning for a Commission of Investigation to probe allegations that the abuse was “covered up” for decades.
Shine worked as a surgeon at Our Lady of Lourdes from 1964 until 1995. The hospital was run by the Medical Missionaries of Mary, until it was sold to the State in 1997.
There have been about 200 civil suits settled by his former employer, the Medical Missionaries of Mary, with fresh cases filed recently in the High Court.
In the last court proceedings involving Shine, the Court of Appeal ruled that another trial should not be held, citing “cumulative factors” – including his age and health, as well as a “misstep” by the Director of Public Prosecutions between 2017 and 2019. This meant the case was in a “wholly exceptional category where it would be unjust to put the appellant on trial”.
Victims argue that justice has not been served, given he was convicted for crimes against just nine boys.
They are looking for a Commission of Investigation to be established to inquire into how the abuse was allowed to continue for so long – and why it took decades to secure a conviction. If you have been affected by any of the issues raised in this article and were abused in state run medical and health facilities, you can contact Dignity4Patients, whose helpline is open Monday to Thursday, 10am to 4pm.