Death of a child in A&E ‘is only a matter of time’

THE Irish Nurses Organisation (INO) has said it is “only a matter of time” before a child loses their life as a result of the inadequate number of paediatric nurses working in the A&E department of Our Lady of Lourdes hospital in Drogheda.

The organisation says there are only four such specially-trained nurses which is not sufficient to provide around-the-clock cover.

Spokesman Tony Fitzpatrick said paediatric nurses have specialist training required when dealing with children who can get very sick very quickly.

He said: “We feel it is only a matter of time before there is a serious incident where death will occur due to inadequate staffing on top of grossly inadequate facilities and overcrowding.”

It has also emerged that there are fewer paediatric nurses in the department now than at the time of the death in September 2005 of two-year-old Kyle Mullen.

The young boy, from Tullyallen, Co Louth, died after contracting septicaemia — despite being vaccinated — and had been examined in the A&E department at the Lourdes some days before his death.

He was sent home and later died as a result of the infection while on holidays in Ibiza with his parents.

After his death an investigation was undertaken by the HSE and the subsequent report recommended that management should “progress the further recruitment of nurses with a paediatric qualification for the A&E department given that the Lourdes is the Louth/Meath hospital centre for paediatrics”.

It also said, “consideration should be given to the development of a paediatric nursing team”.

According to the INO there were six paediatric nurses in the department in 2005, two more than at present.

Meanwhile, figures for the numbers attending the hospital’s A&E department show it is busier than that in some of the Dublin hospitals.

In 2005 there were 38,456 attendances at the Lourdes compared with 36,577 for St Vincent’s and 41,000 at the Mater.

In response to the INO claims the HSE north east said: “With regard to paediatric nurses in the A&E Unit in the Lourdes Hospital, it is standard practice to ensure that one nurse with paediatric experience is rostered on duty at all times.

“Management within the hospital have put systems in place to increase the number of nurses with paediatric experience in the A&E unit.

“To date the response to the recruitment advertisements has been poor and efforts have been made to recruit internationally.

“Three registered general nurses are due to take up employment within the A&E unit.”