“The preventable death of three year old Ruby Chen”

By Elia Petzierides

The recent media coverage of the Queensland Coroner’s Inquest into the death of three year old Ruby Chen has left me perplexed. As a Registered Nurse working in paediatric critical care and a paramedic with over ten years experience this case unsettles me – how could something as simple and common as administering a bag of fluid go so catastrophically wrong? And as the parent of a three year old this case frightens me to the bone – how can a child with a seemingly minor and common illness be pronounced deceased shortly after a routine aeromedical transfer? Continue reading →