Young Girl Given Blood Pressure Drugs Instead of Anaesthetic During Procedure

A five-year-old girl was left screaming in pain when doctors gave her blood pressure drugs instead of anaesthetic when�she was stitched�due to�a leg gash in a horrible medical mix-up.

The foster mother of the young girl told Perth Now�that her daughter was�’screaming and wrestling’ doctors who were operating on her.

The incident happened in February after the girl fell into a branch in a bush while playing at home where she�got a leg gash that needed stitches, and was taken to Fiona Stanley Hospital.

She�was injected several times with a dose of magnesium sulphate commonly used to treat high blood pressure or asthma.�If used incorrectly, magnesium sulphate can cause abnormally low blood pressure and impact breathing.

The�foster mother�said: “They kept putting more and more of the magnesium sulphate into her…They said “she can’t feel it, she can’t feel it,” but I said, “she’s screaming!”‘

Doctors from Fiona Stanley Hospital in Perth, Western Australia, reportedly told the girl’s family that the medical mix-up was due to�similar packaging and the medications being stored close together.

The girl�was kept overnight for observation after the horrifying�accident and recovered without any ill effects.

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The foster mother has spoken out about the incident, after a 60-year-old man died earlier this month as a result of a suspected ‘clinical incident’ from the same hospital.

Dr Robyn Lawrence, Chief Executive, of South Metropolitan Health Service told Daily Mail Australia that the matter has been reviewed, although they cannot comment on individual cases due to patient confidentiality.

“All hospitals, including Fiona Stanley Hospital, are absolutely committed to preventing clinical incidents including medication incidents, and to learn from such clinical incidents by taking steps necessary to avoid re-occurrence,” she said.

Australian Medical Association WA president Andrew Miller told Perth Now that there is a need for drug manufacturers to�make labels clearer, and added that�the Government needed to ensure hospitals were adequately staffed.

Sources:�Dailymail.co.uk�- Perth Now

Clare Whitfield Chief Editor

Clare Whitfield is the Editor of Stay at Home Mum and a recognised voice in practical home management for Australian families. Based in the northern suburbs of Sydney, she balances editorial leadership with life as a stay at home mum to two school age children. Her background in home economics and more than a decade of experience in recipe development, family budgeting, and household systems inform her work.

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