Northern Ireland

‘We’re losing two people every week’ - Co Antrim man says there can be no delay in implementing Infected Blood Inquiry findings

Nigel Hamilton (63) was infected with hepatitis C as a teenager in 1976 and also lost his twin brother Simon last year

Nigel Hamilton, left, with twin brother Simon at the Infected Blood Inquiry in Belfast. Picture by Hugh Russell
Nigel Hamilton, left, with his late twin brother Simon at the Infected Blood Inquiry in Belfast in 2019. PICTURE: HUGH RUSSELL
By Allan Preston

A Co Antrim man given infected blood as a teenager has said action must be taken to implement the recommendations of an inquiry before more victims of the NHS health scandal die.

Nigel Hamilton (63) contracted hepatitis C after he was given an infected blood transfusion for an eye operation when he was 16 in 1976, with three years passing before being told of the infection.

His late twin brother Simon, who died on Christmas day last year, had also contracted the disease through blood transfusions.

As chair of Haemophelia NI, Mr Hamilton was in London on Monday for the Infected Blood Inquiry’s report’s publication and told The Irish News it was a “cathartic” experience.

With over 30,000 NHS patients infected with deadly viruses between the 1970s and 1990s, the inquiry found the scandal “could largely have been avoided” and there was a deliberate attempt to cover it up.

Mr Hamilton said his overall feeling towards the report was “positive”.

“In a personal sense I’m hit with a cascade of emotions because my twin brother passed away,” he said.

“It’s a bit like Moses syndrome, he was heavily involved in getting to the promised land.

“He was part of that and realised it was coming our way, but unfortunately he didn’t get there.

“That’s been a big problem. I also lost two cousins who were both haemopehliacs in the past and two very close friends in the past year.

“We now have an attrition rate of losing two people (who were infected) every week in the UK, so this couldn’t have come sooner.”

With plans to meet Health Minister Robin Swann and Stormont’s health committee, he wants the lessons from the inquiry applied quickly “to ensure no other patient group has to experience what we did”.

He said the next challenge is to address issues of the infected compensation authority as well as legal aspects of appeal.

“We want to make sure that people are getting the chance to close this off and move forward with the rest of their lives because it has been totally captivating and all possessing over these past 45 years.”

The infected blood scandal ‘could largely have been avoided’ and there was a ‘pervasive’ cover-up to hide the truth, an inquiry into the biggest treatment disaster in the NHS has concluded
The infected blood scandal ‘could largely have been avoided’ and there was a ‘pervasive’ cover-up to hide the truth, an inquiry into the biggest treatment disaster in the NHS has concluded (Aaron Chown/PA)

Mr Hamilton still lives with the impact of his infection, which included needing a liver transplant after being diagnosed with cancer.

A failed pancreas over the last year also means he needs to administer insulin on an ongoing basis.

“I have to dodge the sun, even in Northern Ireland, and wear factor 50 suncream.

“It’s also destroyed my family life and impacted my career. I was a project manager in the offshore wind industry and had a number of senior management positions.

“So I’m trying to champion the cause for others. That’s given me some sort of cathartic reaction to what I’ve had to experience.”