A TWO-YEAR-OLD boy died after a heart attack following "missed opportunities" in his care.

Little Oscar Riley had been struggling with chest infections and was taken to hospital when he had a series of seizures.

He underwent surgery to remove a tumour but the procedure left him with severe brain damage.

Just four days later, after receiving advice from health professionals, his parents Ross and Emma made the heartbreaking decision to remove his life support.

Now at an inquest into his death assistant coroner for East Sussex Dr Karen Henderson has said there was a "a perfect storm of circumstances all of which contributed to lost opportunities in directing Oscar’s care, management, investigation and treatment".

Oscar's family, from Ninfield, were represented by Dean Wilson Solicitors, who attended the hearing and asked questions of medical professionals present.

The two-year-old's family first noticed something was wrong when their son began suffering from repeated chest infections.
He often appeared to be choking when attempting to swallow, causing him to frequently feel unhappy and not want to play.
Oscar then suffered from a series of seizures and was admitted to hospital.

The Argus: The Conquest Hospital in HastingsThe Conquest Hospital in Hastings


A spokesman for Dean Wilson Solicitors said: "The inquest found that Oscar had been unwell for some time and that there were missed opportunities to explore his symptoms further.

"After an extortionate number of visits to the local GP throughout the year, Oscar had been admitted to the Conquest Hospital in St Leonards on September 6, 2019, September 9, 2019, and September 26,  2019, with breathing and swallowing issues, but a cause of his issues was not identified.

"Oscar’s parents did not consider that his symptoms were being adequately considered and therefore paid for him to see a private paediatrician on September 27, 2019. He was prescribed some antibiotics and appeared to initially improve before deteriorating again by October 18, 2019.

"The private paediatrician referred Oscar to the Brompton Hospital (London) for further review.

"However, tragically, due to an administrative error, this was not sent. Dr Henderson found that the paediatrician did not have a robust system in place to prevent this from happening.

"Oscar had a further review at the Conquest Hospital on October 17, 2019, when a videofluoroscopy was arranged for January 16 last year, a few weeks after Oscar died."

Assistant coroner Dr Henderson told that "the absolute tragedy is that it is clear that an earlier diagnosis would have given the very real possibility for Oscar to be cured of this benign tumour".

Ben Davey, medical negligence lawyer of Dean Wilson Solicitors acting for the family, said: "This is a tragic set of events that have led to missed opportunities to save a young boy. 

"While doctors cannot be expected to consider every condition immediately, it was very clear that Oscar was unwell and required urgent tests to diagnose his health conditions."

Oscar died on December 24, 2019, leaving behind his parents, Ross and Emma, and his seven-week-old brother.

In a statement read out at the inquest into his death, held on February 18, his parents said: "Oscar was our son. He was a beautiful little soul. His caring and warm nature was infectious. 
The Argus: Oscar Riley with his parents Ross and EmmaOscar Riley with his parents Ross and Emma
"He was incredibly helpful and always wanted to please others around him and to make them smile. In the second year of his short life, we could see him changing. He was unwell a lot of the time, and we weren’t able to get him fixed, despite us promising him we will get him better. 

"Even though Oscar was not well a lot of the time, he was still able to bring joy and warmth to others with his personality. We are still so heartbroken we are not able to see him grow into the wonderful young man he was becoming, but we enjoyed every single minute we had with him. It was a privilege. We will never forget him.

"Oscar has saved the lives of many other children through organ donation. His death has forced process changes within the healthcare system to help bring about faster diagnosis times. We hope sharing our story helps to raise awareness of the symptoms of brain tumours to save more lives."