Grieving parents claim hospital didn’t take son’s disabilities in account

ABC NEWS (Australia)

A grieving WA couple have serious questions about how their 27-year-old son died, a week after having spinal surgery at Royal Perth Hospital. Jake Lambert's parents claim his disabilities weren't taken into account during his recovery, and their concerns about his deteriorating health were ignored.

Transcript

00:00Jules and Brad Lampert want answers.

00:05He was our world. Now he's gone. And we want to know why.

00:11Their 27-year-old son Jake died in Royal Perth Hospital last year,

00:15seven days after having spinal surgery to correct a severe case of scoliosis.

00:20Jake was in ICU for less than 24 hours after major surgery.

00:25We were told that he would be in there for at least two days.

00:29Jake, who had a rare neurodegenerative condition called Friedrich's ataxia,

00:34was moved into a general ward.

00:36And while his parents say his operation was a success,

00:39they claim their son's disability was not taken into account during his post-surgery care.

00:45We felt that he should have been put into a special care ward,

00:50like we were told that he was going to get looked after properly,

00:53that he would be in a monitored bed.

00:55Why wasn't he somewhere where they could keep an eye on him

00:58and watch his stats?

01:01As Jake's health deteriorated, his parents say their concerns were ignored.

01:05Jake died on the seventh day. We had to turn his life support off.

01:10And we couldn't even get to say goodbye because they induced him into a coma.

01:15Put him into a coma when we weren't there.

01:17The campers want a coronial inquest and are considering legal action.

01:20Royal Perth Hospital says a panel of clinicians thoroughly investigated Jake's death.

01:25That panel found there were opportunities where his care could have been improved,

01:30but say it did not cause or contribute to his death.

01:33Jake's legacy is that, you know, people with rare conditions and disabilities need to be acknowledged in the health system.

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