Boy's death at WA hospital preventable

A six-year-old boy who died of pneumonia at a regional hospital in Western Australia could have survived if he had been treated properly, a coroner has found.

Sebastian Keith Parman was brought to the emergency department of Geraldton Regional Hospital on September 14, 2010 after exhibiting mild flu-like symptoms for the previous three or four days and developing a bright red rash over his body.

He died three days later after being examined by several doctors and being misdiagnosed, and while it was eventually determined that he had pneumonia, he was not rehydrated sufficiently.

Coroner Barry King said Sebastian's death was a preventable tragedy.

Mr King said there had been a series of seemingly insignificant missed opportunities and errors in the boy's care, resulting in an initially minor illness turning into a serious condition.

He said many improvements were implemented at the hospital after the child's death, adding the community owed his parents a debt for their persistence in agitating for an inquest.

"Hopefully, the holding of this inquest will lead to continuing improvement of the care of children in hospitals, and thereby provide them with some consolation for their immeasurable loss," Mr King said.