FOUR-MONTH-OLD BABY DIES AFTER SEPSIS WARNING WAS MISSED FOLLOWING BOWEL SURGERY

Four-month-old Kyra Ali Aslam died from sepsis after doctors failed to act on warning signs that her bowel was leaking following surgery.

Kyra had undergone an operation at Sheffield Children’s Hospital to reverse a stoma that had been fitted shortly after her birth.

The day after the procedure, her mother, Lariece Greaves, became concerned that her daughter was not behaving as she normally did.

But according to findings from the case, insufficient weight was placed on Lariece’s concerns.

Kyra later began vomiting shortly after midnight. Nursing staff also raised concerns that she could have sepsis.

However, doctors believed her bowel was simply not working properly following the operation and considered a leaking bowel to be a rare complication.

Kyra’s condition continued to deteriorate.

She was eventually taken for emergency surgery to repair the suspected leak, but by then she was too unstable. She died at 3:40 p.m. on August 13, 2022, shortly after arriving in theatre.

CORONER FOUND WARNINGS HAD NOT BEEN GIVEN ENOUGH WEIGHT

A subsequent inquest examined the circumstances surrounding Kyra’s death.

A prevention of future deaths report issued by the coroner stated that “insufficient weight” had been placed on both Lariece’s concerns and the concerns raised by nurses.

The report also highlighted the failure to recognise that Kyra’s bowel could be leaking after the operation.

The coroner called on Sheffield Children’s Hospital to take action to prevent similar problems from happening again.

THE TRUST HAS NOW ADMITTED FAILINGS

Kyra’s family later instructed specialist medical negligence lawyers to investigate whether more could have been done to save her.

Sheffield Children’s NHS Foundation Trust has now admitted that it failed to recognise and act upon suspected signs of sepsis and that there were missed opportunities to identify and treat Kyra’s leaking bowel.

Most significantly, the Trust accepted that with appropriate care, Kyra would probably have remained stable enough for surgery to successfully repair the leak — and that she would likely have survived.

The Trust has apologised to Kyra’s family.

“I STILL DON’T GET TO WATCH KYRA GROW UP”

Lariece said the admission had given her some of the answers she had spent years seeking, but could never undo the loss of her daughter.

She described Kyra, who was also known within her family as “Dolly Bleu,” as a beautiful little girl with a huge smile who brought love and happiness to the family.

“The Trust finally admitting failings is bittersweet,” Lariece said.

She added that while the admission provides answers and confirms that Kyra was badly let down, she still cannot watch her daughter grow up or celebrate the milestones of her life.

Lariece is now using Kyra’s story to raise awareness of sepsis and encourage families and medical professionals to recognise its warning signs.

She hopes that greater awareness could help prevent another family from experiencing the same loss.

Kyra’s case remains a heartbreaking reminder of how quickly sepsis can become life-threatening — and how important early recognition and treatment can be.