Investigation and inquest
On 19 July 2024, one of my assistant coroners, Richard Brittain, commenced an investigation into the death of Finlay Roberts aged 2 years and 11 months. The investigation concluded at the end of the inquest on 9 June 2025.
I made a determination at inquest that Finlay died from a rare (in a child) but recognised natural cause, a sigmoid volvulus.
Circumstances of the death
Finlay’s parents took him to the Whittington Hospital the night before he died, but the paediatric emergency department was understaffed and it was an extremely busy night.
There was a failure to conduct serial nursing observations; not all tests were carried out as appropriate; and, though specialist advice was sought from Great Ormond Street Hospital, the late arrival of x-rays, a lack of complete information and a failure to close the loop of communication meant that the advice was not obtained before Finlay was discharged home.
It is unclear whether different hospital care that night would have saved Finlay’s life. It would have given him a chance.
Coroner’s concerns
The lack of serial nursing observations was a fundamental omission from Finlay’s care. I heard at inquest that there have been many improvements in the paediatric emergency department at the Whittington since his death, not least of which has been the addition of more nursing staff.
However, a lack of paediatric nursing observations is a subject about which I wrote a PFD report on 13 March 2025 to a different hospital (the Royal Free) following the death of Billie Wicks.
I remain concerned on two counts:
1. A lack of nursing observations may be a much wider issue than is recognised. In my experience there is nothing about the Whittington and the Royal Free that stands out as unusual.
2. The medical staff at the Whittington did not recognise the lack of nursing observations.
• Observations were thought to be acceptable because they were not reported as otherwise, when in fact they were absent.
• The discharging doctor decided that, if his final observations were normal Finlay could go home. Those observations were never carried out, but Finlay was nevertheless discharged.