Dr Kerrie MacDonald is a paediatrician who used to work at Broken Hill Hospital and is still in the NSW health system. He said every time he picked up his son's iPad, "it just reminds me of him. Alex's parents were too distressed to be interviewed, but conveyed to Four Corners the loss of their son had left them feeling that, to the hospital system, he was worth nothing. A traumatised doctor has broken down in tears at an inquest, reflecting on how a relatively well teenager was joking with his father the night before his sudden death. If this is your first visit to the new AusDoc website, reset your password Shefound that Mr Braes'cause of death was multi-organ failure due to sepsis from a group Astreptococcus infection, and that he died as a result of natural causes. Because you left the triage window unattended and there were a lot of patients there," asked Ms Edwards. Coroner's Report: With Willa Ford, Peter Barton, Michael Swan, Kyle Labine. The inquest heard that at the hospital, only one doctor is on duty overnight and two nurses in the emergency department. a coroner has heard. Alex Braes, 18, died of multi-organ failure caused by sepsis. Ironically, though, the sudden death of Dudley's wife in September 1560 removed any hope that the queen might have . The death of Alex Braes still haunts doctors who didn't even know him, Follow the action from the third Test between India and Australia in Delhi in our live blog, Former government services minister Stuart Robert is being questioned at theRobodebt inquiry, Keep up with the latest ASX and business news. A coroner found serious and unacceptable deficiency in a teen's treatment at Broken Hill hospital. "But the source of that infection was never confirmed, as I understandbecause an autopsy was not performed. Alex died in the early hours of September 22, 2017, at Royal Prince Alfred Hospital, Sydney, after being transferred from his local hospital. Thirty-three hours after he had first presented to Broken Hill Hospital, hospital staff finally did vital-signs observations. Mr McLean says by this stage Alex's third presentation alarm bells should have been ringing. The NSW deputy state coroner criticized Broken Hill Hospital's shortcomings in its treatment of Braes, including its failure to perform vital signs observations at the emergency department. It recently handed down 44 recommendations to boost the rural medical workforce and improve the standard of care. "We as a medical profession, we as a health service in New South Wales, we failed Alex Braes and we failed his family," he said. A New South Wales regional hospital where a teenager was sent home three times days before his death is still not safe due to staff shortages, a coroner has heard. Mr Braes was conscious and speaking to staff and was "compensating for the sepsis until he couldn't". Broken Hill teen Alex Braes died in 2017. "What I do know is it was not a satisfactory outcome and that's why when I heard about it from the doctors, I had the ministry go back out there, go through it, and determine why this had been downgraded," he said. I think it was a totally avoidable death," Dr MacDonald said. Download the ABC News app for all the latest. Copyright 2023 IBTimes LLC. Alex Braes, 18, died on 22 September 2017 from multi-organ failure due to sepsis from a Group A streptococcus infection. "I feel heartbroken that I still have my children and that you've lost your boy.". Ryan recommended the communication between the two states be escalated to the NSW secretary of health if cross-border transfer arrangements are not in place within a year. Experts assembled for the inquest said they had notcompletely agreed on the cause of Alex's death. The Deputy State Coroner has criticised a regional hospitals treatment of a boy who was repeatedly sent home before dying from sepsis. Alex Braes. A traumatised doctor has broken down in tears at an inquest, reflecting on how a relatively well teenager was joking with his father the night before his sudden death. A traumatised doctor has broken down in tears at an inquest, reflecting on how a relatively well teenager was joking with his father the night before his sudden death. Braes was in "excruciating pain" and was described by one doctor as "the sickest patient the hospital had ever seen" by the time he visited the hospital for the third time, according to the outlet. Two New Fatal Earthquakes Hit Turkey Days After Deadliest Quake Killed 44,000 . She also stressed within the delivery of the inquest's findings that doctors and nurses who attended to Mr Braes in Broken Hill were neither unprofessional or uncaring. It was far too late. Follow our Australia news live blog for the latest updates, serious gaps in healthcare in rural and regional areas. "Alex was semi-conscious, he was rambling, he wasn't responding to simple questions," Dr O'Donohoe said. This service may include material from Agence France-Presse (AFP), APTN, Reuters, AAP, CNN and the BBC World Service which is copyright and cannot be reproduced. 7 (PDF, 113.1 KB), Coffs Harbour Local Court, 2-16 Beryl St, Coffs Harbour 2450, Before her Honour Magistrate Forbes, Deputy State Coroner, Forensic Medicine and Coroners Court Complex, 1A Main Ave, Lidcombe, Before his Honour Magistrate Lee, Deputy State Coroner, Forensic and Coroners Court Complex, 1A Main Ave, Lidcombe, Inquest into the Death of A.W. What health. "All I can say is since I became aware of the death of Alex Braes, I don't think I have stopped thinking about that young man.". This action will also remove this member from your connections and send a report to the site admin. Alex Murdaugh's defence has rested its case after calling a total of 14 witnesses to try to convince jurors he is innocent of the murders of his wife Maggie and son Paul.. One nurse is responsible for two jobs at the Broken Hill hospital, the inquest into the death of Alex Braes has heard. The inquest will continue on August 31 with Sydney-based hearings. Unfortunately, the night pilot had called in sick. "Because it's not good enough in 2019 to have people in the far west of New South Wales having worse health outcomes than people in the city.". 'An unthinkable tragedy': How did this train crash happen? Far Western Local Health District, through a spokesperson, acknowledged the need to learn from Braes' death and said it would consider the coroner's findings. This resulted in Braes' parents being denied a formal investigation "for an inexcusable length of time," Ryan said. Posted by posopa9401 January 4, 2022 Posted in Opinions Tags: after, Braes, coroner, hears, septic, shockBrokenhospital, Transferoption. A coroner has blasted a NSW hospital for attempting to avoid an investigation into a teenager's death from sepsis after he was sent home from its emergency department, finding efforts to deny the significance of the tragedy inexcusable and deeply distressing to his family. Alex Braes. If they had flown Mr Braes down to Adelaide, the only available pilot would not have been able to return, as their allowed time would have expired. First doctor to treat NSW teenager who died from infection admits he should have taken vital signs, Original reporting and incisive analysis, direct from the Guardian every morning. Broken Hill Base Hospital in NSW had a 'business rule' that discouraged the taking of routine vital signs at ED triage, reports hearing into Alex Braes' death in 2017. A teenager who had been turned away three times from Broken Hill Hospitals emergency department Googled can pain kill you? on his tablet device before he died from septic shock. An infectious diseases specialist has told an inquest he was considering amputation to save the life of a gravely ill teenager he was treating at a rural hospital, but that the only option was to fly him elsewhere. But the 18-year-old mechanic died with tragic suddenness, suffering multi-organ failure due to sepsis, one month after treatment for an infected ingrown toenail. In an interview with Four Corners, Mr Hazzard said he was "not sure" the hospital broke the law, but Alex's death was a circumstance that, "as a father, I couldn't have imagined happening". CORONIAL LAW - cause and manner of death, underlying cardiac pathology, methamphetamine use, conduct of police officers, execution of arrest warrant Inquest into the disappearance and suspected death of Alexander Stetz Decision of Deputy State Coroner Kennedy Coronial law, cause and manner of death, missing person, police search, dementia A sanatorium "business rule" resulted in the teen's vitals no longer being checked all through his first three presentations. By the fourth visit Alex was in excruciating pain and the leg was turning a dark purple colour. "There's always time pressure because there's only one triage nurse," replied Ms Murphy. "No-one deserves to lose a child, no one deserves to go through this, and I can't begin to imagine what this is like for you.". "Unfortunately it's a very serious omission that somebody who's been repeatedly in the emergency department hasn't been gone over with a fine-tooth comb," he said. The inquest heard Mr Braes had an ingrown toenail in August 2017 that was successfully treated with antibiotics. Broken Hill teenager Alex Braess parents remember him as a ray of sunshine, a funny and smart young man ready to live a full life. A coroner has heard one nurse is responsible for both triaging patients in the waiting room and overseeing nurses in the emergency department at Broken Hill hospital. Alex Braes, 18, died at Sydney's Royal Prince Alfred Hospital nearly 46 hours after limping into Broken Hill Base Hospital at 3am on September 20, 2017. 'An unthinkable tragedy': How did this train crash happen? Ms Anderson said 'yes' and that the rule was notin place at the hospital any longer. Counsel assisting Coroner Kristen Edwards asked Arangala how it felt getting the call from doctors at Royal Prince Alfred Hospital in Sydney, informing him Braes had died on September 22. An inquest was established soon after that report and was due to undertake Broken Hill hearings last yearbut was delayed after coronavirusrestrictions affected proceedings. Copyright IBTimes 2023. Alex Braes, 18, died at Sydney's Royal Prince . This service may include material from Agence France-Presse (AFP), APTN, Reuters, AAP, CNN and the BBC World Service which is copyright and cannot be reproduced. She noticed he was sweaty and unwell and moved him into a bed in the emergency department. "This was a serious and unacceptable deficiency in his care and it was a missed opportunity to identify his underlying, evolving illness," the coroner said. The 18-year-old died about 1am on 22 September soon after landing in Sydney after a prolonged effort to evacuate him from Broken Hill. A medical student struggled to insert the cannula. Alex Braes (Credit: ABC "Four Corners," family photograph) The death has traumatised Braes' family and hospital staff alike. We acknowledge Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples as the First Australians and Traditional Custodians of the lands where we live, learn, and work. 'An unthinkable tragedy': How did this train crash happen? But the Flying Doctors were unable to transport Alex because the only available pilot had already reached their maximum flying hours a regulation governed by the Civil Aviation Safety Authority. The following month he began to experience pain in his knee. "It means he'd been unwell for a significant number of hours at that point.". Alex Braes died at Sydney's Royal Prince Alfred Hospital after going to another hospital four times. 00:00. More than 14 hours after his father had first called an ambulance, Alex finally arrived at RPA Sydney a hospital that could actually treat him. The clock starts ticking "as soon as they get the first phone call", according to Dr Greenberg. Ryan found it was potentially dangerous and against NSW Health policy, but a systemic failure that could not be attributed to individual hospital staff. AEST = Australian Eastern Standard Time which is 10 hours ahead of GMT (Greenwich Mean Time), abc.net.au/news/senior-treating-doctor-reflects-on-day-two-of-alex-braes-inquest/100703130, Get breaking news alerts directly to your phone with our app, Help keep family & friends informed by sharing this article, China leaving US behind on development of critical technologies, report finds, Former minister takes 'absolute responsibility' for Robodebt, admits defending scheme despite knowing it could be unlawful, 'Sickening, callous and brazen': Sydney man dies in hail of bullets in front of 12yo son, Evelyn worked three jobs when she was in her 20s to build up her super. Enabling and empowering the medical community to come together. Mr Braes told the inquest that even once Alex became gravely ill, there was no ambulance available to take him to Broken Hill Hospital, no hospitals willing to admit him in Adelaide and no pilot available to fly him to Sydney. A doctor who later saw Alex Braes said the 18-year-old was 'the sickest patient he'd ever seen at Broken Hill' hospital. ", ABC Broken Hillwill deliver a wrap of the week's news, stories and photos every Friday. I have found the failure to perform vital signs observations was a serious deficiency in the care provided to Alex, Ryan said in her findings. WALTERBORO, S.C. . Ms Anderson was then asked when the rule was disbanded. He suffered multi-organ failure due to sepsis from a group A streptococcus infection, one month after treatment for an infected ingrown toenail. By the following morning, Alex's pain was so excruciating, he couldn't walk. NSW coroner Elizabeth Ryan also outlined major delays in transferring Alex Braes from Broken Hill to the Sydney hospital where he died. Former Broken Hill obstetrician Dr Simon Stewart-Rattray told Four Corners the failure to do vital-signs observations was "indefensible". Elizabeth Keft returned, with IV bag in hand, to see doctors and nurses working on Braes in a resuscitation bay. Doctors, who failed to check the vital signs of a teen who died from sepsis, are not responsible for the tragedy, according to a coroner who says they were prevented from doing so under a hospital business rule. Alex was told to go home and come back later that morning for an ultrasound. Alex's mother was left standing outside near the airport tarmac for hours as Alex, still back at the hospital, fought for his life. Sign up here. Ms Ryan's report also noted that experts assembled for the inquest could not say what the original source of Alex's infection was. Alex Braes died at the Royal Prince Alfred Hospital in Sydney on September 22, 2017, after being transferred from Broken Hill Hospital. Alex Braes, 18, died at Sydney's Royal Prince Alfred Hospital about 46 hours after limping into Broken Hill Base Hospital at 3am on September 20, 2017. 'We failed him' Braes had taken antibiotics for an ingrown toenail a month before his death, though investigating doctors told the inquest they could not be sure it was the cause of the later infection in his leg. In Newcastle and Wollongong, a magistrate is appointed by the Chief . The inquest heard that the rule stated, in effect, that 'clinical observations of a patient should only be taken if vital signs influenced the assigned triage category a patient had been given.'. All NSW magistrates are coroners by virtue of their status: s 16. She was in that dual role when Mr Braes arrived at the hospital on September 21, 2017 - crippled by pain and . He believes Alex's death was a consequence of poor structure and organisation at the hospital. All Rights Reserved. I never got to see him again, Mr Braes sobbed. Alex Braes, 18, died on 22 September 2017 from multi-organ failure due to sepsis from a Group A streptococcus infection. Alex Murdaugh's family long dominated the legal scene in his small South Carolina county but for the past six weeks, Murdaugh has been on . Broken Hill teenager Alex Braes's parents remember him as a ray of sunshine, a funny and smart young man ready to live a full life. AEST = Australian Eastern Standard Time which is 10 hours ahead of GMT (Greenwich Mean Time), abc.net.au/news/alex-braes-inquest-findings-health-systems-criticised/101109422, Get breaking news alerts directly to your phone with our app, Help keep family & friends informed by sharing this article, China leaving US behind on development of critical technologies, report finds, Former minister takes 'absolute responsibility' for Robodebt, admits defending scheme despite knowing it could be unlawful, 'Sickening, callous and brazen': Sydney man dies in hail of bullets in front of 12yo son, Evelyn worked three jobs when she was in her 20s to build up her super. "It is entirely possible that Alex had a severe cellulitis without reaching the threshold of necrotising fasciitis, which led to his bloodstream infection and sepsis.". The high-profile . I just think they were trying to grasp the reality of what was facing them and that he was deteriorating very quickly," Mr McLean said. Registered nurse Michelle Murphy, who attended to Alex on his fourth presentation, told the inquest that nurses found the rule 'quite distressing'. Alex Braes, 18, died at Sydney's Royal Prince Alfred Hospital about 46 hours after limping into Broken Hill Base Hospital at 3am on September 20, 2017. The first doctor to treat a limping teenager, whose sudden death from a fast-acting infection is under coronial investigation, says in retrospect he should have taken a full set of basic readings such as blood pressure. "Yes that's my understanding," replied Ms Anderson. "The kidneys start to fail in what is an overwhelming sepsis and that is something that we were battling against, because we didn't actually have the resources to support failing kidneys that's why we needed to get him out," nurse Max McLean said. Coroner training overview. There was no bed available in Adelaide and a pilot could not take him to Sydney without exceeding his maximum allowable working hours. Health workers union takes fight for kitchen staff in NSW aged care home to federal court, Original reporting and incisive analysis, direct from the Guardian every morning. In October 2021, 27-year-old Callum Jones was peacefully walking his dog when he sprained his ankle by slipping on a wooden bridge. She had a particular concern for newly graduated nurses assigned to care for non-acute patients who were still learning new skills and could potentially miss a deteriorating patient like Braes. There was no "grab and go" for Alex and that would have devastating consequences. His inquest has heard a full set of vital. He went into cardiac arrest. AEST = Australian Eastern Standard Time which is 10 hours ahead of GMT (Greenwich Mean Time), abc.net.au/news/alex-braes-death-still-haunts-doctors/11470424, Your information is being handled in accordance with the, Get breaking news alerts directly to your phone with our app, Help keep family & friends informed by sharing this article, China leaving US behind on development of critical technologies, report finds, Former minister takes 'absolute responsibility' for Robodebt, admits defending scheme despite knowing it could be unlawful, 'Sickening, callous and brazen': Sydney man dies in hail of bullets in front of 12yo son, Evelyn worked three jobs when she was in her 20s to build up her super. "He was cold, clammy, sweaty and he was significantly blue and mottled and this mottling colour is really a very ominous feature. 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