Toddler could have been saved from infection, mum tells inquiry

A joint minute of agreed evidence stated Archie attended the children’s hospital the day before his death for a routine appointment where he was found to be “lethargic, breathless and had reduced appetite.”

Dr Heather Maxwell heard the sound of a heart murmur which had not been noted previously.

The inquiry heard she arranged for urgent blood tests and decided to admit Archie for an echocardiogram (ECHO) test for bacterial endocarditis.

However, the inquiry heard there was no bed available on the renal ward and Archie and his mother had to wait in the outpatient department until a bed was found at 19:15.

At this point Archie had a temperature of 38.3C as well as high blood pressure. The ECHO test was also delayed until the next day.

In the early hours of the morning, he was found to be unsettled and “grunting” while breathing, with a heart rate of between 160-178 beats per minute.

The inquiry heard that his mother pressed the emergency buzzer at 03:25 due to Archie vomiting and again 11 minutes later after he stopped breathing.

Attempts to resuscitate him failed and his life was pronounced extinct at 04:36.

A post-mortem revealed that the cause of death was a “subacute bacterial endocarditis.”

A victim impact statement from Archie’s mother was read to the inquiry at Glasgow Sheriff Court, detailing how she had experienced depression and anxiety since his death.

She said: “It has taken me years to get to a stage where I feel slightly ‘normal’.

“The life I should be living just now is a massive difference to the life I am currently living, and Archie’s loss is something that I will never get over.”

The inquiry continues before Sheriff Tom Millar.