Neglect in hospital contributed to death of baby from meningitis, jury rules

Family photo.

By Dave Higgens, Press Association

Neglect contributed to the death of a five-month-old girl who died from meningitis after a series of missed opportunities in hospital to save or prolong her life, an inquest jury has found.

Esta High died at Leeds General Infirmary in November 2023, days after she was taken into the emergency department with a high temperature and vomiting.

Her parents Lynsey Carr and Leon High claimed doctors missed vital chances to test for a bacterial infection and start vital antibiotic treatment, and Carr told an inquest at Wakefield Coroner’s Court how their concerns were ignored until it was too late.

On Tuesday, an inquest jury of five women and six men concluded that: “Esta died of natural causes which was contributed to by neglect.

“Had Esta received required care, based on the balance of probabilities, it would have probably saved or prolonged her life.”

The jury said opportunities were missed as doctors stuck with a diagnosis of Covid after she tested positive for coronavirus.