Inquiry Hears Of Child Deaths In Local Hosptials

The deaths of five children while in hospital are being investigated as part of a public inquiry.

The parents of nine-year-old Claire Roberts, who died in hospital in 1996, wept as details of her death were read out.

The hearing was told that Claire was overdosed with medication and excess fluids.

Claire died at the Royal Belfast Hospital for Sick Children.

She had been admitted to hospital following vomiting and drowsiness. Doctors prescribed intravenous fluids.

Two days later, Claire suffered a respiratory arrest and never recovered. Her parents Alan and Jennifer were told she had suffered brain death but that incident was never reported to the coroner.

Claire's death is one of five children's deaths that are being investigated, the others are Adam Strain who was four when he died at the Royal Belfast Hospital for Sick Children in 1995; Lucy Crawford was 17 months - she was initially treated at the Erne hospital in Enniskillen in 2000.

Nine-year-old Rachel Ferguson, who died in 2001 after having been initially treated in Altnagelvin hospital and Conor Mitchell who was 15 when he died in the RBHSC in 2003.

The inquiry is ongoing.

(H)