The state health watchdog may be asked to reinvestigate the tragic death of Caitlin Cruz following bombshell evidence her hospital care was delayed due to a flat AA battery.
Caitlin was three when she died at The Children‘s Hospital Westmead on October 23, 2016, from an influenza infection that caused swelling and fluid around her heart.
She had been admitted the previous day after collapsing at a medical centre in Rhodes and suffered a second seizure while in the emergency department.
A doctor ordered an electrocardiogram (ECG) test to monitor her heart activity, but Caitlin did not receive it for several hours as the machine in the ED was not working.
The Health Care Complaints Commission, which concluded an investigation into Caitlin’s death in 2018, was operating under the impression the machine was malfunctioning because it had not been plugged in and charged, the inquest heard.
But on Monday nursing unit manager Celeste Daniels said the real culprit was a flat AA battery in the wireless acquisition module that received data from the ECG.
It was not replaced because the ED had no stash of batteries, she said.
Despite several prior investigations into Caitlin’s death, the AA battery evidence appeared to emerge for the first time this week, said counsel assisting the coroner Maria Gerace.
Sydney Children’s Hospital Network executive medical director Mary McCaskill said on Thursday she too had not learned about the flat AA battery until this week.
Ms Gerace said it “appears (the HCCC) have not been given a complete picture”.
She said she was considering asking Deputy State Coroner Derek Lee to refer the issue of the flat battery and the information received about it back to the watchdog for further investigation.
Ms McCaskill said the hospital network had since introduced regular battery replacements, adding it would be “fine” if the HCCC wanted to look into it.
“The system needs to be improved so that ECG machine is not in that situation again,” she said.
The inquest was told on Monday that the HCCC had written to Ms Daniels in 2017 to ask who was responsible for plugging in the ECG machine.
Ms Daniels wrote back answering the question but omitting any mention of the AA battery problem, Ms Gerace said.
Asked why on Monday, Ms Daniels said: “I’m sorry, I don’t know why I didn’t go into depth.”
The inquest continues.
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