'My baby had meningitis but was given paracetamol... we hope NHS learns from his death'

Tragedy: Oliver was wrongly diagnosed with a sinus infection
Ross Lydall @RossLydall13 October 2016

The mother of a baby who died after doctors failed to spot meningitis today spoke of her hope that the NHS would learn lessons from the tragedy.

Abigail Hull, 38, an NHS manager, said she decided to share the story about her seven-month-old son Oliver to raise awareness of the dangers of the disease.

Oliver was sent home from Epsom General Hospital after being wrongly diagnosed with a sinus infection but died two days later.

Mrs Hull and husband Tom, 38, a civil engineer, have recently secured an undisclosed settlement from the hospital. They have raised funds for the Meningitis Research Foundation and Meningitis Now to find better vaccines and support raising awareness of the speed with which meningitis can kill.

Mrs Hull, from Banstead, said: “To lose your child to an illness that is both preventable and treatable is a tragedy. By sharing our story we hope to save lives in the future as people become more aware of the symptoms and of the impact this horrible disease can have. We have always wanted something positive to come from Oli’s death.”

An inquest at Woking coroner’s court last year concluded Oliver had received “wholly inadequate” care at Epsom hospital after being admitted on the night of May 23, 2014.

He was given paracetamol rather than antibiotics and sent home after four hours. It was only when his grandfather, a retired GP, spotted that his fontanelle — the soft gap in his skull — was bulging that Oliver was rushed to Evelina London Children’s Hospital. He could not be saved and died the next day.

Coroner Karen Henderson found that Oliver died of natural causes but there was a “missed opportunity” to discover he was suffering from pneumococcal meningitis.

Mrs Hull said: “We were obviously left devastated by Oli’s death. He was usually such a happy and healthy baby and I took him to [Epsom] hospital late at night because of how serious I thought his condition was. We didn’t want to take any chances and we thought we were in the best possible place but on this occasion we feel we were badly let down.

“We have since found out through the legal process that the doctors should have considered more serious conditions bearing in mind Oli’s symptoms, that he should not have been discharged from hospital, and that he should have received anti-biotics.

“We only hope that the [hosptial] trust has learned lessons, as it now suggests, and that Oli’s death has not been in vain.”

Ania Bean, a lawyer at Irwin Mitchell who represented the family, said: “Nothing can turn back the clock for them, but it is some comfort that through the inquest and the medical negligence legal process issues have been identified that the NHS can now learn from to reduce the risk of similar incidents in the future.”

A spokeswoman for Epsom and St Helier University Hospitals NHS trust said: “Our thoughts and sympathies are with Oliver’s parents. Whilst money can never compensate in these circumstances we hope the finalisation of the compensation process can give them some form of closure.

“As a result of the learning from our investigation into this sad event, we have significantly strengthened our paediatric services, including appointing eight specialist paediatric consultants in A&E.”

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