Girl, 2, died from blood poisoning just hours after doctors accused her mother of being 'paranoid'
- - Brooklyn Harrold was taken to Northampton General Hospital with a fever
- - She was kept waiting for five hours while mother begged for treatment
- - Was admitted overnight but discharged the next day without a blood test
- - Her mother Leanne, 20, claims doctors told her she was being 'paranoid'
- - 24 hours later Brooklyn turned yellow and was rushed back to the hospital
- - She died shortly after being put in an induced coma so she could be transferred
- to Birmingham Children's Hospital
By EMMA INNES
|
A two-year-old girl died of septicaemia just hours after doctors discharged her from hospital - telling her mother she was just being paranoid.
Brooklyn Harrold was taken to Northampton General Hospital on May 9 this year suffering from a high temperature.
Her mother, Leanne, 20, claims she was kept waiting for five hours while she begged doctors to do a chest X-ray or refer her daughter to Birmingham Children’s Hospital.
Brooklyn Harrold, 2, died of septicaemia just hours after she was discharged from Northampton General Hospital without even having had a full blood test, her mother, Leanne, claims
She was kept in overnight but discharged at 9pm the next day - even though her mother believes no full blood test had been carried out.
Ms Harrold said staff told her they suspected her daughter had gastroenteritis and even called her a ‘paranoid mother’ when she begged medics to re-examine Brooklyn.
But less than 24 hours after the tot was taken back to her grandparents’ house, an ambulance was called to take her back to the same hospital.
A full blood test was then carried out on the toddler and preparations were made to transfer her to Birmingham Children’s Hospital.
In order to get a ventilation tube into Brooklyn, doctors allegedly told her mother they had to put her in an induced coma, but she died minutes after being sedated.
The toddler had a history of medical problems as she was born with truncus arteriosus - a rare heart disease that caused her to have one large artery instead of two - and needed an operation to install a tube which connected the organ to her lungs.
Her mother, Leanne, 20, took Brooklyn to the hospital after she developed a high fever but had to wait for five hours before she was seen by a doctor and admitted
It is not yet known how she developed blood poisoning but it is thought she might have had a liver infection which developed into septicaemia.
Ms Harrold, who lives in Northampton, said she is taking legal action against the hospital as she felt the standard of treatment Brooklyn received was ‘unacceptable’.
She said: ‘I got her up on the Saturday morning and she was yellow. She was as yellow as a banana skin - I was freaking out.
‘I got a taxi to my mum’s, and she took one look at Brooklyn and rang an ambulance.
‘Her whole body was swollen and you couldn’t pick her up because she would scream.
Brooklyn was then discharged the next day despite the fact her temperature was still 'sky high'. Ms Harrold also claims that doctors accused her of being 'paranoid'
Just 24 hours after she was discharged, Brooklyn turned yellow and was rushed back to the hospital by ambulance where it was decided that she should be transferred to Birmingham Children's Hospital
‘Her heart consultant was waiting for her at Northampton General Hospital and they said they wanted to refer her to Birmingham Children’s Hospital.
‘I said that’s fine, I wanted this done two days ago on Thursday.
‘They said they needed to put her in a coma and put her on life support to get her there.
‘She died for three minutes when they were trying to get the tube into her and they massaged her heart to get her back.
‘But she died after they had done it and they couldn’t save her.
She died shortly after being put in an induced coma to prepare her for transfer for Birmingham Children's Hospital. Brooklyn suffered from a rare heart condition and had to have surgery at 10-months (pictured)
Her great-grandfather, Michael Diggin, believes she was treated differently by staff because of her heart condition and that she could have been saved if they had reacted more quickly
‘I am going to sue. Her consultant is doing an investigation and I am going to get myself a solicitor.
‘On the Thursday they kept her waiting in Paddington Ward (at Northampton General Hospital) for five hours and then a doctor came and listened to her chest and breathing.
‘They said they didn’t need to do blood tests and they left her sitting in the waiting room for another two-and-a-half hours.
‘She was really struggling by this point, her heart beat was jumping through her chest.
‘Seven times I asked for heart scans and chest X-rays on the Friday and asked for someone who knew about Brooklyn’s condition.
‘They kept telling me "no, no, no". I said I wanted her transferred to Birmingham Children’s Hospital but Paddington Ward said she didn’t need to go there and that they were sending her home.
Ms Harrold says that Brooklyn's sister, Tia, 4 (pictured), keeps asking when she is going to see her sister again and does not understand what has happened
‘They sent her home at 10pm and it was freezing cold. When my nan picked us up, she said “that baby looks really ill”.’
Ms Harrold added: ‘I’m disgusted at the treatment Brooklyn received. I think it could have been better.
‘Her sister is distraught and keeps asking when she is going to see Brooklyn.
‘I have taken her to Brooklyn’s grave, but I can’t explain what has happened to a four-year-old.
‘At the time they told me I was a paranoid mother, but I feared for my daughter’s health.’
The results from the blood test carried out by the hospital on May 11 later revealed Brooklyn was suffering from septicaemia - which has been put on her death certificate.
Northampton General Hospital is carrying out an investigation into the circumstances surrounding Brooklyn's death but Ms Harrold says that she is going to sue the hospital
Brooklyn’s great-grandfather Michael Diggin said he believed she had been treated differently by staff due to her history of heart problems.
He said: ‘It was probably 50/50 that she may die of septicaemia, but if you catch it earlier you enhance the chances of survival.
‘I believe they lost a 36-hour window to treat her with antibiotics.’
A spokesman for Northampton General Hospital said a full investigation had been launched into the circumstances surrounding Brooklyn’s death.
He said: ‘We offer our sincere condolences to Brooklyn’s family for their tragic loss.
‘We will be discussing the results of that investigation with the family when it is complete.
‘It would not be appropriate for us to comment further at this time.’
A spokesman for the Northamptonshire County Coroner said no inquest was due to be held into Brooklyn’s death.
No comments:
Post a Comment