Parents have won a payout after they were told to give their son Calpol – before he died of sepsis. Daniel Klosi’s mum and dad begged with medics to give him blood tests, fearing he was seriously ill. Despite taking him to hospital four times in the week before he died, they were told to give him the over the counter pain relief.
Lindita Alushi and Kastriot Klosi were repeatedly told to take him home from the hospital. Two of the visits saw them sent home with instructions to give him Ibuprofen and Calpol. And they have now been awarded a compensation payout over the death of the four-year-old, The Mirror reports.
An inquest heard Daniel was only admitted to a children’s emergency department on April 1, 2023, after his parents visited hospital twice. They waited for four hours in A&E, but by that time Daniel was visibly deteriorating, and he died a few hours later in the early hours of the following morning.
His grief-stricken parents, who live in Kentish Town in London, had taken him to The Royal Free Hospital in Camden, north London, four times in the week they died. And Lindita, 44, and Kastriot, 51, instructed medical negligence lawyers Irwin Mitchell to look into their son’s death.
Investigators found during Daniel’s third hospital visit, staff did not read his medical records or obtain a full history from his parents. An inquest also heard medics did not order blood tests or administer life-saving intravenous antibiotics. Daniel, who had autism, attended hospital with “atypical” features of sepsis, Coroner Mary Hassell said.
She criticised medical staff, adding they needed to “pay even more attention than usual” to parents and their concerns regarding their child’s health. The inquest heard while Daniel had shown some signs of sepsis in children – such as a high temperature and vomiting – he did not appear to be lethargic.
Tragically, if intravenous antibiotics had been given to Daniel during his third visit, he would have survived, the coroner added. Royal Free London NHS Foundation Trust has now issued an apology and will pay the family an undisclosed settlement. Peter Landstrom said he was “very sorry that it was necessary” Daniel’s family had to raise concerns about his care during a “distressing time”.
In the letter to Daniel’s parents on January 2 this year, the NHS group’s chief executive wrote: “I am aware that there has been an inquest and the Trust takes the coroner’s conclusions very seriously.
“The Trust is truly sorry that the events in the lead up to Daniel’s death occurred. On behalf of the Trust, and all the staff involved, I would like to apologise unreservedly for the devastating outcome.”
Lindita, a pharmacy assistant and qualified doctor in her native Albania, said: “Each time we took Daniel to hospital it was because we thought his condition was getting worse. We asked for tests such as blood tests and X-rays but it felt like our concerns weren’t fully listened to.
“We were getting more concerned about Daniel as it looked to us like his condition was deteriorating. When he was admitted to hospital everything seemed to move so quickly and in just a few hours Daniel had died.
“I’ll never be able to find the words to describe the anger, hurt and pain we continue to wake with each day following Daniel’s death. What happened to Daniel, and especially the care issues he faced, will live with us forever.”
Paying tribute to her son, Lindita added: “Daniel was such a sweet and adorable little boy. We felt so blessed that he was our son. He brought so much happiness and sunshine to our lives.
“He didn’t deserve to die like he did because the hospital staff wouldn’t listen to our concerns. That he could have been saved is the most difficult thing to come to terms with. Medical staff should never make assumptions about a child’s condition such as I believe they did in Daniel’s case.
“That he was taken to hospital four times in a week indicated something was seriously wrong and we were right to be extremely concerned about his condition. All parents know their children the best, and that’s especially the case with parents of children with conditions such as autism.
“We take some comfort from finally having an apology from the Trust but remain hurt at the length of time it has taken. If by continuing to speak out we can save others, maybe Daniel’s death won’t have been totally in vain.”
A Royal Free London spokesperson said: “We are deeply sorry that Daniel died while under our care. We would like to share our heartfelt condolences with his family and loved ones.
“Following a thorough investigation, we identified a number of areas for improvement, and measures were taken to immediately address these. This included improving training and awareness for all of our staff.”
The spokesperson said this was “particularly in relation to children who repeatedly visit our emergency departments; how we care for children with learning disabilities; and the importance of listening to parents and carers when they raise concerns.” They added: “We will continue to do all we can to raise awareness of the signs and symptoms of sepsis among all of our staff.”
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