A coronial inquest into the death of 19-month-old Victorian toddler Noah Souvatzis in 2021 has found his death was preventable.
According to ABC News, coroner Katherine Lorenz identified several failings in the lead-up to Noah’s death, including poor record keeping and an inadequate induction for the junior doctor acting as second in charge without proper supervision in an overwhelmed emergency department.
Ms Lorenz also found Noah’s illness was misdiagnosed.
Noah was wrongly discharged from hospital in late December 2021 after falling victim to a high fever and vomiting. He passed away from meningitis two days after he was discharged from the Northeast Health Wangaratta hospital by an unsupervised junior doctor.
An inquest was filed to investigate the shortcomings and negligence of the medical staff, under the pretence Souvatzis’ death could have been prevented as indicated by the coroner.
The coroner’s recommendations include ways for parents to escalate care, including putting the onus on clinicians to inquire about concerns in case parents are hesitant to speak up.
After the coroners report was handed down Noah’s parents Ben and Steph did not speak to reporters but made a statement through their lawyer in court, thanking the coroner for listening to them after years of not being heard.
Source: ABC News.
