A nine-month-old baby died a day after he was admitted to hospital with a chest infection, an inquest heard.
Eoin Julian, from Ballylinan, Co Laois was admitted to Our Lady's Children's Hospital in Crumlin on December 29th, 2015. A number of changes have been implemented at the hospital since the baby's death the following day.
Eoin was born at the Coombe Hospital on March 16th, 2015.
His mother Aine Julian had been advised he had heart defects when she was 20 weeks pregnant.
“He was born in good condition and weighted 7 pounds 12 ounces. For both myself and Sean, this was like winning the lottery,” Mrs Julian said.
The child had an enlarged heart due to a thickening of the heart muscle of the left ventricle.
He spent three days in neonatal intensive care before he was discharged to the ward and later from hospital on March 21th.
A few days later he was diagnosed with obstructive sleep apnea.
Pediatrician cardiologist Dr Orla Franklin told Dublin Coroner’s Court that a percentage of children presenting with similar difficulties to Eoin will improve over a period of years.
"Dr Franklin said that if Eoin could get through his first year of life without his heart deteriorating, he would likely overcome his difficulties," Mrs Julian said in her deposition.
In August 2015, it was found that Eoin’s heart had not deteriorated and Dr Franklin expressed optimism about his prognosis.
“She said he was doing extremely well,” Mrs Julian said.
On December 27th, Eoin developed a slight cough.
Two days later, Mrs Julian brought him to Crumlin Children’s Hospital because the cough was getting worse. He was diagnosed with bronchiolitis and moved from the emergency department to a ward.
The infant was deemed be a higher risk due to his enlarged heart and he was reviewed by a number of doctors.
The inquest heard that Eoin was given chloryl hydrate to sleep and this was administered on the ward, which is against hospital guidelines.
A CPAP ventilator, which the child used for sleep apnea at night, was used while he was awake despite instructions from a respiratory consultant that it should be used while he slept.
A call from a nurse requesting assistance from a doctor at 10.22am on December 30th went unanswered. The child was not seen by a consultant cardiologist until he was transferred to intensive care in a critically ill condition, shortly before he died on December 30th.
The cause of death was acute cardiac arrythmia due to bronchial pneumonia in the context of an abnormal heart.
The inquest continues on Tuesday with evidence from three nurses.