School Boy Dies Hours After Being Sent Home From Hospital

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Schoolboy Andrew Allan dies after hospital sent him home​

A HOSPITAL sent a desperately ill schoolboy home with junior Panadol and a pamphlet on gastroenteritis, saying he would be fine - just hours before he died.



Now the grieving parents of Andrew Allan are demanding to know why their son was not considered sick enough to be checked by a doctor at Northam Hospital, near Perth.



Instead he was seen by a nurse.



Kylie Allan, 42, and her husband, James, 46, said their son would be alive if he had received appropriate medical attention.



They are supposed to know what they are doing, Mrs Allan told The Sunday Times. We want answers - how could this happen?



Mrs Allan said Andrew could barely walk when she took him to hospital on Thursday and that he was sweating and vomiting with a high fever.



After I said that I was really, really, worried about his temperature (the nurse) took his temperature and said that it was over 40C,'' Mrs Allan said.



But (the nurse) said that Andrew just had gastro and gave us a pamphlet on gastro and told us to go home and that he would be okay.



We were at the hospital for less than 10 minutes.



We walked in, saw someone straight away, and he was given some kids' Panadol and two hydrolite sticks, and that was it. We didn't get to see a doctor or the emergency room. We were seen in the hallway where you talk to someone through the glass windows. The triage is as far as we got.



I am berating myself thinking maybe if I had gone to another hospital . . . maybe if I had taken a second opinion.''



After leaving the hospital, Mrs Allan drove Andrew to the family home between Meckering and York about 30 minutes away after picking up 14-year-old daughter Emily from work in Northam.



She said Andrew took a shower and went straight to bed at about 9.30pm.



I said to Andrew, 'They say you're not sick, you're just mildly sick, you'll get better.'



At 7am next morning she found her son dead in his bed.



Mrs Allan's youngest child Sean, 12, came into her bedroom and said: Andrew must be feeling better, he's quiet.''



As soon as Sean said that I raced into the bedroom that the boys share,'' she said.



Andrew was completely cold and stiff. He must have died virtually straight away.



It was horrendous, especially when my 12-year-old son followed me into the bedroom,'' Mrs Allan sobbed.



The Year 11 student was too sick to attend Northam High School last week suffering flu-like symptoms.



Long distance truck driver Mr Allan said he was stunned that the decision of one person could have such catastrophic consequences.



You don't expect to take your boy home from hospital after being told he will be fine to find him dead the next morning,'' he said.



It's just horrific.''



He said he would welcome a coronial inquest into his son's death.



A Health Department spokeswoman last night said a doctor had been on call, but not on site.



WA Country Health Service Acting-Chief Executive Officer, Wayne Salvage offered his condolences to the family last night and promised a thorough investigation.



On behalf of the WA Country Health Service I extend my deepest sympathy to the Allan family at the tragic loss of their son Andrew,'' he said in a statement.



I wish to reassure them that a full and thorough review will be carried out into the circumstances surrounding their son's treatment at Northam Hospital.''



Northam Hospital has been blighted by a doctor shortage in the past.



Australian Medical Association state president David Mountain said it was not unreasonable to expect to see a doctor for diagnosis.



In general, if you present to a hospital emergency department anywhere, you should have the expectation that you can see a doctor to make a decision about whether you should come in or go home,'' he said.



He said decisions on anyone with potentially serious illnesses should be made by a doctor.



That should never be the workload of a nurse,'' he said.



The cause of Andrew's death is yet to be determined.



Source: http://www.news.com.au/national/sch...me/story-e6frfkvr-1225926097605#ixzz0zwvHKNwu



Malpractise if I've ever read about it!

This is awful, and there's nothing the hospital can do for what this poor family must be going through, and will be going through for a LONG time to come.



I am berating myself thinking maybe if I had gone to another hospital . . . maybe if I had taken a second opinion.''



And she probably will be for life.

This is just terrible, really.

 

[Jazzy]

While very tragic, I blame the parents for this. There is no way in heck I would not have insisted he see a doctor and I wouldn't have left until he did. I don't care if I had to sit there all night waiting for a doctor. At least when he took a turn for the worse, he would have been in the hospital. What the heck took these parents so long to even take their son to the hospital? He was sick for over a week suffering flu-like symptoms.

I don't see this as a malpractice issue, I see this as parents not following through and getting their son the help he needed.