Zane Jamison’s death at Launceston’s hospital fuelling the fight for answers by his aunt Nicole

ABC NEWS (Australia)

There are growing calls for changes to the laws governing how deaths are certified in all Tasmanian hospitals after revelations a senior staff member incorrectly certified dozens of deaths at the Launceston General Hospital.

Transcript

00:00I often wonder when his birthday's come around what he would look like, whether he'd be a

00:13dad, whether he'd be a husband or a partner.

00:19It's been eight years since Nicole Harrison's nephew died.

00:23He was to be in hospital for seven to ten days and he was to come home to us.

00:29He came home but he came home in a box.

00:32Zane Jamison had leukaemia and after a bone marrow transplant he developed a severe skin

00:38condition and was admitted to the Launceston General Hospital in 2016.

00:43Ms Harrison claims during his stay her nephew wasn't being turned in bed, causing pressure

00:48sores that rotted his muscle to the bone.

00:51She also says maggots inhabited his open wounds.

00:55I was told it's okay Nicky, maggots are used in medical science.

01:03Yes doctor they are, when they're bred in a sterile environment, not from a rubbish bin.

01:12Nobody deserves that.

01:17The Launceston hospital's been under the microscope recently after a senior staff member was found

01:23to have repeatedly acted outside the scope of the law when certifying dozens of death

01:27certificates.

01:28This sparked a review, with an independent panel established to investigate any death

01:33certificates that may have been incorrectly documented at the Launceston hospital.

01:37As a result, a total of 29 deaths have been referred to the coroner.

01:43After Zane died, Ms Harrison was told there would be an autopsy, but this didn't happen

01:47because his death certificate had already been signed.

01:51It stated Zane died of sepsis due to his condition, it didn't mention pressure sores.

01:56I highly believe what killed him was the septicemia from the pressure sores.

02:04Ms Harrison sent details of Zane's case to the independent panel, and told them she

02:09had photos of Zane's pressure sores.

02:11She says the panel didn't look at them or investigate further.

02:15This left Zane's family confused about the scope of the panel.

02:18If mistakes aren't looked at, and corrected, they just keep on going on.

02:27The Medical Error Action Group think the panel should have examined hospital deaths statewide,

02:33not just at the LGH.

02:35They've heard from other families who have concerns about their loved one's hospital

02:39death certification.

02:41And particularly three hospitals, Royal Hobart, Launceston General and North West Burnie.

02:48Tasmania's health department says its death reporting processes align with relevant legislation.

02:55It says while the focus of the review was on the LGH, recommendations are being implemented

03:00statewide.

03:01But there are now calls for legislative changes to how death certification works.

03:06There should be two doctors signing off, and one will be the treating doctor, but the other

03:11one is an independent doctor, and that will have some checks and balances.

03:16For Ms Harrison, she's still fighting for answers over her nephew's treatment.

03:20I can't scatter his ashes and let him be free yet, because there's no peace.

Category

Transcript

Recommended