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Baby who died had to wait four hours for ambulance as paramedics were “having lunch.”

In October 2013 six-month old Kyran Day was in Shoalhaven Hospital with suspected gastroenteritis. With his worried parents, Naomi and Grant and grandparents by his side they were desperate to get answers, but staff at the hospital told them the doctor had “more urgent cases”.

Three days after being admitted to Shoalhaven Hospital Kyran died.

His parents say his death was because the  “health system couldn’t do there[sic] job and look after our son.”

Kyran was initially diagnosed with gastroenteritis at 7pm on October 19 but was actually suffering from a bowel obstruction.

An inquest is examining the role of the Shoalhaven Hospital and its staff, the Newborn Emergency Transport Service and NSW Ambulance into the death of the six-month-old boy.

The  Daily Telegraph reports that the inquest heard that on the morning of October 20, Dr Toby Greenacre did not re-examine Kyran until 10.30am because he had “more urgent cases”.

It was up to Kyran’s grandmother to urge the doctor to check on her grandson. He then noticed that the condition of the six-month-old “had clearly changed”.

Three days after being admitted to Shoalhaven Hospital Kyran died. Via Facebook.

At 10.45am on October 20 the hospital decided that the baby needed transporting to Sydney Children’s 150km away. But the decision was made to transport him via road instead of air, four hours later he had still not left the hospital.

The inquest heard the first ambulance dispatched was called off so its crew "could have lunch" and a second ambulance was delayed because they already had a patient and then they also needed to eat before the drive to Sydney.

Yet still four hours later Kyran was at Shoalhaven Hospital.

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Grant and Naomi Day. Via Facebook.

An hour after the ambulance left Shoalhaven it had to divert to Shellharbour Hospital because Kyran was not breathing properly.

He needed to be resuscitated.

Four hours after arriving at Shellharbour the desperately ill baby was finally flown to Sydney.

"We will keep going until we have ­answers and justice for Kyran James Day" Via Facebook

By the time Kyran got to Sydney Children’s Hospital for specialist surgery - more than 24-hours after he was first admitted, the baby had suffered several cardiac arrests.

He was placed on life ­support after his bowel was successfully operated on, but on October 22 his life support was turned off.

Kyran's mother, Naomi Day, now a mother to a second son, said the inquest had been "hell".

"But we will keep going until we have ­answers and justice for Kyran James Day," she wrote online last week.

Last month Grant Day wrote on Facebook:

"It's one month out untill [sc] the inquest into our Son Kyrans death and I'm down at the water's edge still two and a half years down the track still pondering why, what and how everything and everyone at Shoalhaven hospital got it so so wrong. A healthy beautiful young 6-month-old child who was completely let down by the NSW health system.

“We will fight for justice and we are fighting on behalf of all the little babys [sic] and children who don't have a voice who have been taken too young.”

Naomi Day with her first son, Kyran. Via Facbeook.

Counsel Assisting Patrick Griffin yesterday told the Day family that the two-week inquest was “going be distressing at times”.

 

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