Alder Hey Children’s Hospital NHS Foundation Trust has accepted full responsibility for 24 care failures that led to the death of Eleanor Hazel Aldred-Owen, BBC Health reported. The trust apologized and acknowledged that the 21-month-old’s death should have been prevented.
Eleanor died at the Liverpool hospital on October 2, 2023, after surgery for craniosynostosis, a condition affecting skull development. A coroner concluded that her death resulted from misadventure, with neglect contributing.
The operation took place on September 29. During recovery, Eleanor’s heart rate was elevated and she required oxygen. High-flow oxygen treatment was started without being documented or prescribed according to the trust’s guidelines. She also developed a collapsed lung following the surgery.
A radiographer did not alert ward staff to an abnormal chest X-ray, while the doctor responsible for reviewing it was assessing another child in the emergency department. Before the collapsed lung was identified and treated, Eleanor suffered a cardiac arrest that caused an unsurvivable brain injury.
The investigation also identified repeated errors in calculating her pediatric early-warning score. Correct calculations would have prompted an earlier medical assessment and chest X-ray.
Her parents, Rachel and Chaz, from Mold in Flintshire, described enduring grief, trauma and guilt despite knowing the failures were not theirs. They welcomed changes at the hospital but said those measures must be applied consistently and reviewed to protect other children.
The trust said it had introduced a clear process for escalating urgent and severely abnormal radiology findings. Chaz said two postoperative procedures had been named after Eleanor, giving the family a legacy they could take pride in.