Child left in pain ‘after physician associate wrongly prescribed pessary’

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By Jane Kirby, PA Media

A child was left in severe pain after being wrongly prescribed a pessary for suspected thrush by a physician associate, the health ombudsman has said.

A new report detailed the case of the five-year-old girl who was in pain, bleeding and distressed after being given the vaginal pessary - leading to her mother being questioned about possible sexual abuse.

The Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman (PHSO) said the case exposed “multiple failures” in the care of the girl.

The youngster was taken to a GP practice in the East Midlands in March 2023 with itching and vaginal discharge.

A PA suspected thrush and recommended a Clotrimazole vaginal pessary and cream.

Her mother, who believed her child was being treated by a GP, questioned the treatment and the size of the pessary, but was reassured that it was appropriate, the ombudsman said.

Pain and distress

But after the mother administered the pessary, the young girl began to bleed and scream in pain. The cream also burnt the girl’s skin.