Daughter’s death will haunt us forever say parents of girl who died after being discharged from A&E

The parents of an 11-year-old girl who died after being discharged from A&E say her death will ‘haunt us forever’. Annabel Greenhalgh died of natural causes, an inquest into her death ruled last week.

But a coroner highlighted ‘ missed opportunities ’ in her care after she was sent home from hospital and told she was suffering from constipation.

In a statement issued following the hearing her devastated family are calling for answers. Parents Josie and Craig paid tribute to their ‘beloved girl’ and said they would ‘give anything to have her back in our lives’.

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Emma Rush, the specialist medical negligence lawyer at Irwin Mitchell representing the family, said after the hearing: “It’s more than 18 months since Annabel died, and losing her so suddenly and in such traumatic circumstances continues to have a profound effect on her family, particularly Josie and Craig.

“Grieving for their only daughter has been made even more difficult because of the many unanswered questions and concerns they had had around the events leading up to her death.

“While nothing will ever make up for the pain and loss Josie and Craig feel, we’re pleased that we’ve at least been able to provide them with the answers they deserve.

“Sadly, the inquest has highlighted worrying issues in the care provided to Annabel prior to her death. It’s now vital that lessons are learned to help improve patient safety and prevent other families from going through the terrible suffering that Annabel’s family has.

“We’ll continue to support Josie and Craig at this tough time.”

The inquest found that the Warwick schoolgirl died of a cardiac arrest brought on by a cardiac arrhythmia. The coroner ruled that it was difficult to say if there was a direct correlation between Annabel’s care and her death.

In a joint statement, Josie and Craig said: “To lose Annabel in the way we did will haunt us forever. She was our beloved girl and for her to be taken away so suddenly and cruelly is something we’ll never get over.

“To this day, we still wake up and it takes us a moment to remember what’s happened, then the horror and devastation hits us like a truck. No parent should ever outlive their child. To think we’ll never get to celebrate landmarks in life such as Annabel passing her exams, getting married or having children of her own is hard to accept.

“To relive everything again at the inquest has been very tough for both of us, but we’re grateful that we at least have some answers now.

“We would give anything to have Annabel back in our lives – we miss her love and enthusiasm so much - but we know that can’t happen. All we can hope for now is that no other family has to go through what we have.”

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