Family of 5-year-old boy from Rotherham insists his death could have been prevented
They've rejected an inquiry which found the care given to Yusuf Nazir was appropriate
Last updated 5th Oct 2023
The family of a five-year-old boy who died a week after he was sent home from Rotherham Hospital's emergency department have rejected a report which found his care was appropriate.
Yusuf Mahmud Nazir died on 23rd November 2022 - eight days after he was seen at Rotherham Hospital and sent home with antibiotics to treat severe tonsillitis.
The conclusions of an independent inquiry looking into Yusuf's care was published on Thursday after his family complained that he should have been admitted and given intravenous antibiotics on the night of November 15th.
Yusuf's uncle, Zaheer Ahmed, says the family raised repeated concerns about breathing episodes where Yusuf kept jerking awake and gasping for air. He doesn't feel they were properly listened to or taken seriously.
He questioned the independence of the report and said it is missing vital details about his nephew's treatment. The published report is 36 pages long, but we have seen an earlier copy which is 49 pages long.
The report published by NHS South Yorkshire concluded: "We consider that on the basis of Yusuf's observations, presentation and diagnosis there was a reasonable expectation that the antibiotics prescribed were appropriate and an admission was not clinically required."
It also concluded that "a bed would have been found" if an admission had been deemed necessary.
It found that there were effectively 22 beds on the children's assessment unit and the children's ward and, between 1am and 5am on November 16, between 17 and 19 were occupied.
The report set out how Yusuf, who had asthma, was taken to the GP with a sore throat on November 15, as he had a sore throat and was feeling unwell, and he was prescribed antibiotics by an advanced nurse practitioner.
Later that evening, his parents took him to Rotherham Hospital Urgent & Emergency Care Centre (UECC) where he was seen in the early hours of the morning after a six-hour wait.
Yusuf was discharged with a diagnosis of severe tonsillitis and an extended prescription of antibiotics, the report said.
Two days later, Yusuf was given further antibiotics by his GP for a possible chest infection, but his family became so concerned they called an ambulance and insisted the paramedics take him to Sheffield Children's Hospital rather than Rotherham.
Yusuf was admitted to the intensive care unit on 21st November but developed multi-organ failure and suffered several cardiac arrests which he did not survive.
The report said there was only one doctor in the paediatric UECC on November 15 and that, after midnight, that medic was responsible for covering adults and children.
But it added: "The doctor who eventually saw Yusuf is an experienced UECC doctor who would not have needed to refer to a paediatrician on the basis of Yusuf's presentation that night and would not have needed to do any further investigations or admit him.
"If he had seen him earlier, he would have been sent home earlier, he would not have requested an admission."
Zaheer said: "It's not an accurate report. It's not what has happened to Yusuf. A lot of information is missing out of the report.
"The 13 pages they have taken out are all about Yusuf - about his care and his reaction to his treatment which are very important to the cause of his death.
"We were begging for IV treatment, we were begging for them to just observe him while he was having these breathing episodes. Nothing was done.
"At the time they said we've got no beds available, we've got no doctors available, we've got children waiting in the waiting area.
"Nobody listened to us then when we were asking for this treatment."
The report said Yusuf experienced "a highly unusual inflammatory response" which led to respiratory failure, but the exact causation could not be determined as no post-mortem examination was conducted.
Zaheer said: "We want another investigation done. NHS England is such a big organisation why have they just got one independent investigation company. Why don't they give us a panel to choose from?"
"The lesson that they're learning based on this report are incorrect because this report is incorrect."
He said Yusuf's cousins still try to contact him every Saturday by Facetime, and always leave him his share of sweets ready for when he 'comes home'.
"Yusuf was a very, very jolly, playful child," he said. "A very happy child, very independent.
"He was really active and full of happiness and full of energy."
Dr Jo Beahan, medical director at The Rotherham NHS Foundation Trust, said: "All of us at the Trust were incredibly saddened by Yusuf's tragic death and our thoughts remain with his family at this difficult time.
"We welcome the independent report that has followed the thorough investigation into the circumstances around Yusuf's death.
"We note that sadly, despite the efforts of all the teams involved, the report concluded that Yusuf's death couldn't be avoided and that his initial medical care in A&E was appropriate for his condition at the time.
"We listened to the family's concerns raised at the time and made some immediate changes following Yusuf's death. We accept and are implementing the recommendations made in the report."
She says a number of staffing improvements have been made, including the addition of five emergency medicine consultants and plans for extra staff over the busier Winter period.
She also says lessons are being learnt when it comes to communication and listening to family members when they raise concerns about their loved ones.
"Families know their children better than we do so we've taken that on board and make sure our staff learnt that," she says.
"Yusuf's mum was an expert in dealing with Yusuf's asthma, and I think it is really important that we learn to take that on board.
"The report makes some national recommendations, and we'll also be using the learning that we've taken as Trust following Yusuf's death to talk to our staff about how important it is."