It is just over five weeks since the Belfast trust made the bombshell announcement that patients were being recalled following concerns over the work of consultant neurologist, Dr Michael Watt.
This was an unprecedented recall for Northern Ireland and caused considerable alarm and anxiety among Dr Watt's patients.
In all, 2,600 patients from the health service and also the consultant's private practice are to be called in for review in a major exercise that will take months to complete.
While there have been a small number of briefings from the health authorities, information in relation to this extremely serious matter has been remarkably limited.
Indeed, there are many questions that remain unanswered and this lack of communication has caused concern among patients and elected representatives.
In particular, it is far from clear precisely when the trust became aware of issues surrounding Dr Watt's care.
According to the Belfast trust, concerns were raised by a Belfast GP in December 2016 yet it was a further six months before Dr Watt was restricted from seeing patients.
However, one woman who was under the care of Dr Watt obtained her confidential medical notes which revealed that her case was being assessed by a second neurologist in April 2016.
This is significant because it is nine months before the trust says it was formally alerted to concerns.
It is also not clear whether the medical authorities carried out any appraisals of Dr Watt's work in recent times, especially in the period leading up to December 2016.
The senior neurologist has not made any comment since this issue came to light and while this is his prerogative, his many patients, some of whom have been publicly supportive, probably deserve a statement setting out his position.
In the absence of a minister, it is the permanent secretary of the Department of Health who is ultimately responsible for health and social care in Northern Ireland.
It is up to him to ensure there is accountability and transparency at all levels of the health service.
