Andrew Rynne is a retired Irish surgeon, medical practitioner and founder of Clane General Hospital in

County Kildare County Kildare () is a Counties of Ireland, county in Ireland. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster and is part of the Eastern and Midland Region. It is named after the town of Kildare. Kildare County Council is the Local gove ...

. Rynne was the chairperson of the

Irish Family Planning Association The Irish Family Planning Association (IFPA) is an Irish charity working to enable people to make informed choices about sexuality and reproduction. The organisation promotes the right of all people to sexual and reproductive health information as ...

and the

Republic of Ireland Ireland ( ), also known as the Republic of Ireland (), is a country in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe consisting of 26 of the 32 Counties of Ireland, counties of the island of Ireland, with a population of about 5.4 million. ...

's first vasectomy specialist. He was known for his liberal approach to birth control.

Early life and education

Rynne was born on 18 May 1942 in Downings House in

Prosperous, County Kildare Prosperous () is a town in north County Kildare, Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is within the townland of Curryhills, at the junction of the R403 road (Ireland), R403 and R408 road (Ireland), R408 Regional road (Ireland), regional roads, abo ...

. His father was Stephen Rynne, a writer, broadcaster, and author, while his mother,

Alice Curtayne Alice Curtayne (1898–1981) was an Irish writer and lecturer. She was born on 6 November 1898 at 2 Upper Castle St, Tralee, County Kerry. She was a daughter of John Curtayne, carriage builder, or coach builder, of Castle St, Tralee, by his wife ...

, was a writer, hagiographer, lecturer, linguist and scholar. From 1961 to 1968, he attended

Royal College of Surgeons The Royal College of Surgeons is an ancient college (a form of corporation) established in England to regulate the activity of surgeons. Derivative organisations survive in many present and former members of the Commonwealth. These organisations ...

in Ireland. After graduation, Rynne emigrated to Canada with an internship with Hamilton Civic Hospital.

Career

He started his general practise in

Mitchell, Ontario Mitchell is a community in the municipality of West Perth, part of Perth County, Ontario, Canada. It is located at the intersection of Ontario Highways 8 and 23, northwest of Stratford, and north of London. Mitchell is no longer a separat ...

from 1968 to 1973, where he was introduced to

vasectomy Vasectomy is an elective surgical procedure that results in male sterilization, often as a means of permanent contraception. During the procedure, the male vasa deferentia are cut and tied or sealed so as to prevent sperm from entering into ...

. In 1970, he was appointed as the

coroner A coroner is a government or judicial official who is empowered to conduct or order an inquest into the manner or cause of death. The official may also investigate or confirm the identity of an unknown person who has been found dead within th ...

for the

Perth County, Ontario Perth County is a county and Census divisions of Canada, census division in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario in Southwestern Ontario, west of Toronto. Its population centres are Listowel, Ontario, Listowel, Mi ...

. In January 1974, he returned to Ireland and established a general practise in Clane, County Kildare. In 1975, Rynne joined

(IFPA) and started doing vasectomies for them. In 1984, he sold condoms as an act of civil disobedience and got fined £500. In the following year, he became the Chairman of IFPA. In the same year, he founded Clane General Hospital with the opposition from the Catholic Church and the local supporters.

Shooting

In 1990, Rynne was shot by a former client. According to Rynne, the gunman fired six or seven times with a .22 Long Rifle and shot him in the right hip. The incident is the subject of a short film ''The Vasectomy Doctor'' by Paul Webster.

Bibliography

* ''Smoking is Your Decision''. Ward River Press 1982 * ''Abortion. The Irish Question''. Ward River Press 1983 * ''The Vasectomy Doctor''. Mercier Press 2005 * ''The Reverend Psychopath''. Self-published, Amazon, 2023. A biography about Rev. Samuel Cotton and his wife Eliza who founded an orphanage in Kildare in 1866. * ''The Foxhunter''. To be published 2024. A novel based on a true story of medical negligence that gave rise to Ireland's Right to Die case 1995.

Cultural connections

Known in Irish traditional music circles as Andy Rynne, he was a source for several songs recorded by

Christy Moore Christopher Andrew "Christy" Moore (born 7 May 1945) is an Irish folk singer, songwriter and guitarist. He was one of the founding members of the bands Planxty and Moving Hearts and has had significant success as a solo artist. His first albu ...

, including "The Dark Eyed Sailor" and "The Cliffs of Doneen". Moore's album '' Prosperous'' was recorded in the basement of Downings House, the Rynne family home.

References