Horror find in little girl's X-ray after hospital turned family away
Amity Buchanan, 1, has suffered a severe burn in her throat and has been put in a coma after doctors initially failed to detect the concealed danger.
A furious Queensland family have labelled their local hospital "beyond incompetent" after doctors sent their young daughter away before they later discovered she had swallowed a potentially lethal button battery.
One-year-old Amity Buchanan was taken to Mackay Base Hospital on Monday by her parents Jemma and Daniel after the little one was choking and vomiting, with her worried parents suspecting she had swallowed something dangerous.
However, the family were reportedly turned away after a doctor checked Amity with a stethoscope, as the hospital reportedly had no beds available. After her condition worsened, the family persisted with a second emergency department visit where an X-ray detected the acidic button inside her throat.
"We were seen by the doctor who put his stethoscope on to check her airways and that was it. After the airways were clear, he said her behaviour was fine and she looked fine so she was fine to go home because they were busy," Jemma told Sunrise on Thursday morning.
Despite the delayed discovery of the battery, the family say they were still forced to wait before their daughter was treated.
“We waited 15 minutes knowing that my daughter has a battery in her throat,” Daniel told 7News, "The neglect there is just absolutely ridiculous.”
Doctors remove the button battery
The one-year-old was moved to another hospital where doctors performed surgery to remove the button battery, however, the damage had already been done — she now has an eight centimetre burn in her throat.
She has been put into an induced coma while health professionals perform further scans and monitor her condition, with doctors also worrying about the possibility of infection.
For Jemma and Daniel, their heartbreak is compounded by their fury for the hospital staff who they deem did not act quickly enough to their concerns.
“I’m just beyond angry, what’s it going to take?” Daniel said to 7 News. “If (the doctor) had just done the X-ray then and there, she’d probably be her happy and healthy self at home right now.”
Speaking to Sunrise on Thursday morning, Jemma warned other parents to react to their "mother's instinct" when it comes to their child's health.
"Just trust it and do not be scared to fight for your child. It does not matter," she said, before adding, "Just use your instincts to give your child the best can you possibly can. That is all you can do."
The family has set-up a GoFundMe page to assist with the financial burdens associated with Amity's condition.
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