'Why are you crying daddy?' - heartbreaking final words of 5-year-old doctors failed to diagnose

A five-year-old girl's last words to her distraught father were 'why are you crying daddy?' as she died of a cardiac arrest brought on by an illness doctors failed to spot, an inquest heard.

Medics sent Ward Alshammary home with a virus, but two days later she was rushed back to hospital when her condition rapidly deteriorated an inquest heard.

It was discovered her irritable rash, sore throat and pain in her lung was actually bronchial pneumonia and doctors were unaware of a major infection between her lungs and chest wall.

As they prepared to move her to paediatric intensive care from a high dependency unit, they gave her medication to tackle the bacterial infection but she suffered a cardiac arrest.

Moments before her death, Ward gave her weeping father Badr Alshammary a kiss and asked him why he was crying. Ward died in the early hours of January 22.

Dad Badr and mum Feraihah said: "We were incredibly close to our daughter Ward. Although she was only five years old, she cared for us, as much as we cared for her.

"She loved her siblings and all of her friends at school. Ward loved going to school and she loved her teachers. When she grew up she wanted to be a paediatrician - she even told the doctor at the hospital that was what she wanted to be.

"After that first visit to the hospital, we thought she would be fine. Even when we went back on 21 January 2013, we did not expect to leave the hospital without our daughter. Ward's death has affected our lives significantly: our family life, our studies, every day, even walking down the street.

"We know that nothing can bring Ward back but we hope that knowledge of the circumstances in which Ward died, which we now understand in more detail, can prevent similar deaths in the future."

When she was first admitted, the youngster was examined and given an anti-histamine drug before being sent home.

Indeed, medics at Southampton General Hospital in Hampshire told the family Ward would be well enough to mix with other children at school.

This was despite her being severely dehydrated and not having eaten or drunk for two days, Winchester Coroners' Court heard.

She died after being readmitted and taken straight to a high-dependency unit where concerned staff called in senior paediatric consultant Dr Peter Wilson. However, she suffered a cardiac arrest thought to have been brought on by a flood of toxins into her system and having suffered septic shock.

Lawyers representing the Alshammary family asked if their little girl may have survived had she been admitted directly to intensive care rather than time being lost at the high dependency unit.

Grahame Short, Senior Coroner for Central Hampshire, said it would never be known if her death could have been prevented by earlier treatment.

An internal investigation carried out by the hospital revealed there had been failings in her care. It said doctors had not appreciated the gravity of her condition in the final hours of her life, the court was told.

Giving evidence, paediatric consultant Dr Jason Barling was asked if she would have already contracted pneumonia three days before her death on her first hospital visit.

He admitted it was not known and added: "It could have been present at the time, but it could also have not been present until 24 hours later."

Dr Barling added that since Ward's death there had been briefings across the NHS region and there was now increased awareness of how to manage Sepsis in children when they were hospitalised.

Recording a verdict of death by natural causes, Mr Short said the "failure to recognise Ward's deteriorating condition" caused "a delay in the initial amount of immediate treatment".

He said: "With the benefit of hindsight we now know there have been failings in individual decisions which, if they had been different, might have prevented the tragic outcome in this case."

Ward’s additional infection in her lung lining, which clinicians were unaware of at the time, may have been "highly-relevant" to her sudden, rapid deterioration, he added.

Mr Short said: "The central issue in this case is whether it would have made any difference if her true medical condition had been recognised sooner.

"It may well have been different if she had been moved to the paediatric intensive care unit and she was treated sooner, but I don't know that - and I don't believe that we'll ever know."