Aussie girl dies days after family sent home from hospital: 'They didn't test'
Cathy's parents thought she had contracted the common cold, but her condition quickly got 'worse and worse'.
A heartbroken couple who lost their five-year-old daughter to a treatable condition are imploring families across the country to push harder for answers in hospital when "you know something's not right" with your child.
Devastated NSW parents Jazz and Justin said they thought their daughter Cathy was sick with a common viral infection in winter last year when she came down with "a bit of a runny nose". The Bathurst locals said they were prescribed prednisone by their GP for croup, but Cathy quickly got "worse and worse".
As the five-year-old's condition deteriorated over the ensuing two weeks, the family grew increasingly concerned. One night, Cathy couldn't breath at all, so the family rushed her to the emergency department at Bathurst Base Hospital.
But according to mum Jazz, hospital staff were too busy to properly treat her daughter.
"They took her in to be examined, but the doctor had to leave halfway through the examination to go do a [resuscitation] and she put us back out in the waiting room and said that they'd bring us back in," Jazz told A Current Affair.
"And then about an hour went by and they came back out and said they had spoken to the paediatrician who said just to keep up the Panadol, Nurofen and what we were doing. So the paediatrician themselves never actually had a look at her, at what was happening."
Stark warning over viruses leaving Aussies bedridden 'for weeks'
Toddler dies hours after being sent home from Queensland hospital
The young family left the hospital on the doctor's orders and without a diagnosis. Cathy had sepsis — a serious condition in which the body responds improperly to an infection — caused by strep A. It occurs when the body's response to an infection damages vital organs. When left untreated it can be deadly.
Schoolgirl suffered cardiac arrest days after leaving hospital
Just two days after the young girl returned home from hospital, she went into cardiac arrest in her living room, forcing her father to perform CPR on her in front of her siblings and mother.
Cathy was airlifted to Westmead Children's Hospital in Sydney's west, but by the time she arrived it was too late — she was declared brain dead.
"You know, as a parent, you know your child better than anyone, so you know when something's not right," Jazz said.
"They didn't test for anything, for strep A or any bacterial infection, or anything like that," Justin recalled. "You're not meant to outlive your children."
A spokesperson for Western NSW Local Health District (WNSWLHD) "sincerely apologised" for Cathy's traumatising death. "We extend our sincere and deepest condolences to the loved ones of Cathy Kassis and recognise the profound impact her death has had on her family and the community," the spokesperson told Channel 9.
"WNSWLHD have provided her family with support and information, including the findings of a serious adverse event review. We review all cases where there has been an unexpected outcome to identify any opportunities to improve patient care and safety."
Cathy's death was reported to the Coroner.
According to figures from the NSW state government, at least 55,000 people develop sepsis each year in Australia and 8,000 of them die from sepsis-related complications.
Do you have a story tip? Email: newsroomau@yahoonews.com.
You can also follow us on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, Twitter and YouTube.
