“What we need to do is be in a position where clinicians can look at what happened,” he told reporters on Friday. “If there’s been a breakdown in procedures, if there’s been an incorrect diagnosis, if we let that family and that child down we will say it immediately.”
Loading
The kindergarten student, who the ABC reported was six years old and lived on the northern beaches, attended St Luke’s Grammar in Dee Why.
Principal Geoff Lancaster sent a letter to parents about the death on Tuesday evening, describing the girl as a “happy, kind and vivacious child who loved her family, friends and school”.
In the letter, one of her teachers described her as “a thoughtful and caring student with a kind nature, who enjoyed play and many close friendships”.
Families have been offered counselling and grief resources, and met the school’s pastoral care team on Wednesday morning.
In a statement, a spokesman for NBH said: “We at Northern Beaches Hospital are deeply saddened by the tragic loss of a young child. Our heartfelt condolences go out to the child’s family and loved ones during this incredibly difficult time.”
“While we cannot comment on the specifics of the case during the review period, our thoughts are with the family, and we will continue to offer them our full support.”
Northern Beaches Hospital.Credit: Renee Nowytarger
The Sydney Children’s Hospital expressed its “deepest condolences to the family for the loss of their child”.
In this case, and like many families with sick small children, the girl was initially taken to the children’s hospital rather than the hospital closer to home on the northern beaches.
This issue was raised in the recent NSW government health funding inquiry, which recommended the need for system-wide service planning to define when children should be treated within their local health districts with the support of SCHN specialists, and when they should be transferred.
The death comes after the embattled Northern Beaches Hospital was slammed in a scathing independent report by NSW Auditor-General Bola Oyetunji in a parliamentary review, which found that issues with its medical record system were a critical factor in the death of two-year-old Joe Massa in September 2024.
Elouise and Danny Massa hold a pair of their son Joe’s shoes.Credit: Kate Geraghty
The audit found the controversial public-private partnership between the government and hospital operator Healthscope “creates tension between commercial imperatives and clinical outcomes”. It also found the hospital had failed to act on warnings about risks to patient safety and outcomes.
On Thursday, an independent probe into the death of Massa revealed a concerning lack of life-saving critical care cameras over the beds of seriously ill newborns and children – technology that is standard across the state’s public hospitals.
Loading
Massa died after he was incorrectly triaged, despite concerns raised by clinicians and his parents, Elouise and Danny Massa, that he was in a life-threatening condition.
The latest NSW Respiratory Surveillance Report shows circulating influenza is still high, with 4284 influenza notifications in the week to August 3, 1085 of whom were children under five, and 1112 were aged five to nine.
There were more than 1000 emergency department presentations for “influenza-like illness” in the same week.
The influenza vaccine is recommended for all individuals aged over six months every year and is free for all children aged six months to under five years.
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people aged six months and over, pregnant women at any stage of pregnancy, and people aged 65 years and over can also get free flu vaccines.
In 2024, 24.1 per cent of children in NSW in that age group had received at least one dose of an influenza vaccine, down from 27.1 per cent in 2023.
Start the day with a summary of the day’s most important and interesting stories, analysis and insights. Sign up for our Morning Edition newsletter.
