Doctors held ‘outdated’ views about ME, inquest into sufferer’s death hears

Get the free Morning Headlines email for news from our reporters across the world Sign up to our free Morning Headlines email Sign up to our free Morning Headlines email SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Dr Willy Weir, a retired NHS consultant and expert in myalgic encephalomyelitis, said he had urged bosses at the Royal Devon and Exeter Hospital to readmit Maeve Boothby-O’Neill for life-saving treatment. It would appear a considerable proportion of the staff at the Royal Devon and Exeter Hospital, including some consultants, still hold an outdated understanding that ME/CFS has psychological causes Dr Willy Weir, ME expert She was admitted for the second time in May and discharged a few weeks later with medics content about her nutritional intake. “At the same time, you will need to tackle head on the dogma concerning the cause of ME/CFS that some colleagues are still perversely adhering to.” Dr Weir also urged the hospital to readmit Miss Boothby-O’Neill for total parenteral nutrition feeding. One of the curious historical facts of this illness, although I began to be interested in it in 1987, I never really began to see patients as sick as Maeve until about 10 or 15 years ago Dr Willy Weir, ME expert He said in the absence of a “magic bullet” treatment for ME, she faced a “long struggle” to recover as effective treatments were several years away from development.