Nurse's 'Stark and Fatal Error' Led to Boy's Death, Court Hears
A senior nurse with four decades of experience made a 'stark and fatal error' that resulted in the death of a seven-year-old boy at Britain's largest private children's hospital, a court has been told. Anuradha Bhupathiraju, 64, is standing trial at Southwark Crown Court almost ten years after the incident, charged with gross negligence manslaughter.
The Events Leading to Tragedy
Seven-year-old James Dwerryhouse, described as a 'happy, lively' child with several significant health conditions including sleep apnoea, underwent routine bowel surgery at Portland Hospital in central London on August 25, 2016. The procedure itself was successful, but due to his condition, which meant he was prone to stop breathing during sleep, James was admitted to the paediatric intensive care unit for overnight monitoring.
Bhupathiraju, then the nurse in charge of the unit, took over James's personal care twice during her shift when a junior nurse took breaks. During the second handover at 2.10am on August 26, the court heard the monitoring equipment had been temporarily removed because James had been distressed and pulling at the wires.
Prosecutor Andrew Thomas KC told jurors that James fell asleep about 40 minutes after Bhupathiraju assumed his care. 'Once James had fallen back asleep, the defendant should have resumed the electronic monitoring,' Mr Thomas said. 'The need for monitoring was the central reason why he had been admitted to intensive care in the first place.'
A Preventable Tragedy Unfolds
For over an hour, Bhupathiraju allegedly left James sleeping without reconnecting the monitors. When the junior nurse returned from break just before 4am, he discovered the monitors weren't attached and attempted to connect them himself.
'He switched the machines on but there was no signal,' Mr Thomas told the court. 'He assumed there must be a fault with the machines. After several attempts, he realised to his horror that the problem was not that the monitors were not working, but that James' breathing and heart function had both stopped.'
Medical staff performed CPR and managed to re-establish a pulse, but James had suffered a severe and irreversible brain injury from oxygen deprivation. Tests confirmed the injury was not survivable. James was transferred to a hospice near his Ipswich home, where he died the following day.
The prosecution alleges that Bhupathiraju later made false entries in James's medical notes, recording vital signs at 3am when the monitoring equipment was turned off. CCTV evidence also contradicted her claim that James's father had been present until the junior nurse returned.
Bhupathiraju, who works at the Royal Brompton Hospital and has over 20 years of experience in UK hospitals, denies the charge. She admits she didn't reconnect the monitors but claims she had been given 'limited information' about James's conditions and didn't appreciate the serious risk he faced. The trial continues.
