Family Of Midlands Woman Crushed By Horse Criticise HSE Apology

Wednesday, 21 January 2026 11:38

Bryonny Sainsbury's mother Alison says the HSE took too long to admit responsibility for the fatal incident.

The parents of a Midlands woman who died following a series of "egregious errors" while in the care of the HSE say its apology offers them no closure.

Bryonny Sainsbury died after she was crushed by a horse during veterinary procedure at a riding stable in Longford on 26th of August 2021.

She was treated in Mullingar Hospital before being brought to Beaumont Hospital where she died on August 31st.

An inquest found Ms Sainsbury could have survived if she was transferred to Beaumont sooner, or if doctors in Mullingar had correctly followed the advice from Beaumont experts initially.

Her mother, Alison, says it took far too long to get the HSE to take responsibility:

Here is the HSE's apology in full:

The HSE has offered a sincere and unreserved apology to Bryonny’s family for the serious failures in care provided at Regional Hospital Mullingar.

An independent System Analysis Review (SAR) into Bryonny’s care was commissioned in October 2021 by Regional Hospital Mullingar.

The final report was accepted by the Commissioner in July 2024.

The review found significant system-wide failures in the delivery of care.

Following completion of the review, a Quality Improvement Plan was developed by the hospital and shared with the family at a meeting in September 2024.

All actions and recommendations arising from the review have now been completed, with an audit plan in place to ensure ongoing oversight and compliance.

In response to the findings, a national Patient Safety Alert was developed by a team of expert clinicians, led by the HSE Chief Clinical Officer and advised by the National Trauma Programme.

The alert focuses on the management of traumatic brain injuries in hospitals without on-site neurosurgical services and covers clinical governance, recognition and management of the deteriorating patient, communication, and clinical handover.

The alert was accompanied by a protocol for the management of acute traumatic brain injury in Hospitals without neurological services, which was developed by the Trauma System Implementation Programme, and is being implemented.

The alert was issued to all hospitals nationally December 2024.