Boy who died would ‘100% still be here’ if not denied hospital bed, uncle says

Five-year-old Yusuf Nazir died from pneumonia on Monday. It is reported an infection had spread to his lungs and caused multiple organ failure, resulting in several cardiac arrests.

His family said they struggled to get the poorly child admitted to hospital in the run-up to his death, as they were told there were not enough beds or doctors available.

His uncle, Zaheer Ahmed, said he had “begged” Rotherham General Hospital to take his nephew in.

He told ITV’s Good Morning Britain a GP said Yusuf had “severe tonsilitis” and needed intravenous antibiotics - but the doctor had been told not to refer anyone to the ward and they needed to go to A&E instead.

Mr Ahmed said he rang the hospital himself. “I begged them. I begged them. I’ve never begged for anything in my life and I begged them to help him,” the tearful uncle said.

He said he told them Yusuf needed treatment but was told there were no beds. He claimed he was told: “What do you want me to do? Just get a bed out of the air? We’ve got kids waiting.”

They say they drove him to the emergency department of Rotherham General Hospital the next day when his condition did not improve. The family waited for hours before Yusuf was seen but he was sent home even though the doctor treating him had said “it was the worst case of tonsillitis he had ever seen”, according to Mr Ahmed.

Yusuf’s condition worsened while he was at home and his parents called an ambulance and insisted he was taken to Sheffield Children’s Hospital, where he later died.

Rotherham NHS Foundation Trust has launched an investigation into Yusuf’s care.

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Source: The Independent. 29 November 2022