NHS trust failed in care of young girl before death

Maya's mother, Magda Wisniewska, said: “Our family will never be the same without her”

There were “a number of failures” at an NHS trust in its care of a six-year-old girl before she died, an inquest has found.

However, there was no evidence to suggest East Kent Hospitals University NHS Foundation Trust had directly caused or contributed to Maya Siek's death.

The young girl died at Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother hospital, in Margate, in December 2022, after being sent home with antibiotics for suspected tonsillitis two days earlier.

Des Holden, chief medical officer for East Kent Hospitals, said: "We apologise unreservedly to Maya’s family for the mistakes we made in her care."

Coroner Catherine Wood identified a series of things that “could have been done differently” by the trust.

They included a failure to keep Maya in hospital two days before her death and to inform all members of the treating team about her sepsis diagnosis the following day.

Heart failure

Maya went into cardiac arrest on 21 December and died, despite resuscitation efforts.

The coroner accepted the cause of death as heart failure, alongside the presence of Maya’s other chronic conditions and influenza.

Ms Wood said: “Despite the plethora of evidence that we’ve heard, we still don’t really have the full answers.”

She said she was unsure if any earlier treatment “could, or would, have made a difference”.

Following the hearing, Maya's mother Magda Wisniewska said: “Our life has been ruined and our family will never be the same without her.”

Dr Holden said the coroner's findings were "fully" accepted, adding: "We recognise, with great sadness, that we failed Maya and her family."

He said the trust had made changes to its children's services as a result of the case.

"We have also strengthened handover between teams and our clinical guidelines for doctors who are looking after deteriorating children,” he said.