Hudson Cole Perrins’ family has issued a plea for answers about the two-year-old’s treatment ahead of an inquest investigating his death from sepsis earlier this year
A heartbroken mum has told how her two-year-old boy died just days after he was rushed to hospital and diagnosed with constipation.
Little Hudson Cole Perrins was taken to Wolverhampton’s New Cross Hospital by his worried dad after he started complaining of stomach pains on June 27. Just four days later – one month before his birthday – the “boisterous and cheeky” toddler passed away at Birmingham Children’s Hospital.
Doctors have said they suspect the youngster died of a brain injury caused by urosepsis, and an inquest into his death is due to begin on Thursday. His devastated family are demanding answers ahead of the hearing and questioned why doctors were so quick to dismiss his symptoms as constipation.
Mum Kayleigh Taundry, who works at the hospital’s trust, said Hudson was born with a heart defect that meant he had to undergo surgery at just seven months, and was “finally turning a corner” and catching up to his peers when he died. She said: “As a family, we just want lessons to be learned and we don’t want any other family to go through everything that we’ve been through because it’s just devastating.
“The ground’s just opened up and we’ve all just fallen into a black hole, and we don’t want this to happen again. He was one month from turning three. He was very cheeky and boisterous, but really loving as well. He really loved a cuddle and was really affectionate. He was our baby. Hudson was born with a heart defect and had to undergo heart surgery at seven months old.
“We thought that would be the worst hurdle he would have to overcome. He was finally turning a corner. He was finally catching up, he was finally starting to develop alongside his peers, he was finally starting to talk and we just didn’t expect this at all. We are all still in denial. I can’t put it into words – he was a beautiful boy.”
Hudson was first taken to the hospital by his dad in the early hours of June 23, with doctors feeling hardness in his tummy they concluded was constipation. He was given two suppositories and an enema, and was then discharged despite not having a bowel movement.
Kayleigh and her partner, Shannon Waightman, took Hudson back to New Cross the following day when he began having seizures and was still in pain. He was later transferred to the Paediatric Intensive Care Unit at Birmingham Children’s Hospital, where he died on June 27 after his parents took the heartbreaking decision to turn off his life support.
Kayleigh stressed that she in no way blames Hudson’s dad for what happened when he first took Hudson to hospital, but believes staff should have made more efforts to contact her as Hudson’s next of kin. Kayleigh said Hudson had a complex medical history which included bladder and kidney issues as well as his heart problem.
She believed that hospital staff took the “obvious” route of diagnosing and treating constipation instead of investigating other options, even when there was little evidence of constipation. She said: “His dad was keeping me updated, he kept texting me throughout the time he was in A&E with Hudson, but it was through the night so I was unaware until I woke up the next morning.
“By that time everything had already happened. I think I should have been notified by the hospital. I would have been able to advocate for him a bit more. I know Hudson inside and out and, with having a medical background, I feel I could have pushed for some things, because I know what should have been done and what was available to be carried out.
“We have never had any other fault with New Cross. Even when my partner and I took him back in, we can’t fault the care we received. Maybe it was the staff members that were on, or the time of day. When his dad took him it was night shift, when we took him it was day shift.”
“You think, what if? What if it was a day shift, what if I took him – it’s all just what ifs?” Kayleigh now wants answers to several key questions, including why was no urine sample taken, especially in light of Hudson’s history of bladder and kidney problems, and why no other cause of his tummy pain and hardness was investigated aside from constipation.
She also questioned why Hudson was discharged despite having had no bowel movement, how they recorded a pain score of two when Hudson wouldn’t have been able to describe the sensation, and why he wasn’t give pain relief. She added: “On his interim death certificate it says brain injury with a leading cause of urosepsis, but the evidence is inconsistent as to whether that was the case.
“We’re none the wiser. I’m hoping we get more answers from the Inquest, because at the moment we feel lost.” Clinical negligence expert Michael Portman-Hann, from law firm FBC Manby Bowdler, who is supporting the family, said: “This is a tragic case that has left the family with so many questions and concerns.
“We will support them in any way we can to make sure no other family goes through this trauma.” The inquest is scheduled to be heard at Black Country Coroner’s Court on December 5 and 9.
