A five-year-old boy was ventilated and put in a medically induced coma hours after visiting his GP where no treatment was offered, his mother claims. On June 14, Ezra-Jac Crabb was rushed to hospital by his parents after experiencing breathing difficulties during his brother's medical appointment.
Stephanie Parsons, Ezra's mother, told WalesOnline that her little boy had an out-of-hours appointment at the GP the day before as he had a cough and was given steroids for croup. Whilst at the appointment, he was checked over and seemed fine. The next day, Ezra was kept home from school and attended a GP appointment at 10.40am for his older brother at Pont Newydd Medical Centre in Porth. During the appointment, the family claimed that Ezra started to have a “coughing fit” and faced breathing difficulties. Concerned for his son, his father asked the GP if they could take a quick look at him while they were there.
The family felt that instead of receiving help, they received a 'derogatory' attitude from the GP. Stephanie claimed that her partner was told they should have made a separate appointment for Ezra to be looked at as it "wasn’t fair" on other patients in the waiting room if the GP looked at him during his brother's appointment. Eventually, Stephanie claimed that the GP did take a look at Ezra - which showed that his oxygen levels were reportedly at 92, extremely "low for his age” - but says no treatment was offered.
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She added: "[The GP] did nothing, all they did was give his dad a row because he should have booked him an appointment - I'm sorry my son becoming suddenly ill is an inconvenience to [them]."
Concerned for their son, the family quickly raced to the A&E department at the Royal Glamorgan Hospital and Ezra was taken straight into triage at around 11.15am. At the hospital, he tested positive for croup, Human metapneumovirus (hMPV) - a common respiratory virus - and Rhinovirus. Stephanie said: "Literally within two hours he was put into an induced coma, they ventilated him and he was up in theatre waiting for the transport team to take him to Bristol Pediatrics ICU."
Stephanie said the treatment they received in the Royal Glamorgan Hospital and Bristol Hospital was “amazing” and the staff there talked them through everything. She claimed that they were told by medical professionals that the GP would have had access to steroids, nebulizers and oxygen. She added: "He should have been given something and [the GP] should have tried.
“I’m not saying the GP could have prevented it because we’ll never know that, but [the GP] didn’t try. When he was in that GP, his airways were closing.”
Stephanie added that it was "horrible" to see her little boy ventilated, saying: "I put my faith in them [doctors at the hospital] to look after my child. To see him sat there and he didn't have a clue what was going on, soaking in sweat, severe [breathing] recessions - literally everything was sucking in, it was like someone had vacuumed him. It was horrible, seeing him in Bristol on the ventilator, pumping everything they could into him."
Ezra was in a medically induced coma and ventilated for six days before being transported back to the Royal Glamorgan Hospital, and eventually home. A week after Ezra returned home, the family booked a follow-up appointment for a check-up with a different GP at the medical centre, as they claim they were advised to by the intensive care unit. During this appointment, Stephanie claimed that the GP "didn’t know what to do” with Ezra until she asked him to check his chest, throat, and airways. She said that she isn’t happy with the level of care or treatment at the medical centre.
Stephanie said that she understands the NHS is under pressure, but claims "mistakes like this shouldn't happen". She said she hopes that by sharing their story, another child's symptoms won't be dismissed.
A spokesperson for Cwm Taf Morgannwg University Health Board said: “We are concerned to hear about the severity of Ezra’s illness and send our best wishes to him and his family. While we are not able to comment on the specifics of Ezra’s care at his GP surgery, we encourage the family to get in touch with us directly so that we can explore their concerns in more detail.”
