A family's heartbreaking wait for answers over the death of a ten-day-old twin baby is finally coming to a close more than three years after the tragedy.
Kingsley Olasupo and his twin sister, Princess, were born slightly premature in Royal Bolton Hospital on April 8, 2019, when mum Nicola Daley was 35 weeks pregnant. The pair were both doing well at birth but Kingsley's low weight, the presence of meconium - a newborn's first poo - at birth, and his premature nature were all risk factors for infection.
Princess was thriving as a newborn but Kingsley wasn't feeding well, and had a low temperature, meaning he had to be admitted to the special care baby unit at just three-days-old. His condition kept deteriorating, and the next day he was diagnosed with bacterial meningitis and sepsis.
Tragically, Kingsley never recovered. A scan carried out when the youngster was just ten-days-old showed signs of severe brain damage, and his life support was removed later that day.
Kingsley died on April 18 with his parents by his side, after just a week-and-a-half in the world. Three years on and ahead of a full inquest due to take place next week, Bolton NHS Foundation Trust last month gave the family an official apology after accepting liability in Kingsley's death.
Kingsley 'would have survived' with proper care, report found
Nicola and dad, Tunde Olasupo, believed something had gone wrong with Kingsley's care after his death, and enlisted the help of a medical negligence solicitor to help them navigate the inquest into their baby son's death. In December 2019, at a hearing held ahead of a full inquest, the Trust accepted there were some areas of care that could have been dealt with better after their investigation report was released.
An inquest into the newborn's death was due to be held later that month but the late arrival of the investigation report meant the hearing had to be delayed until June 2020. It was then delayed further still by the coronavirus lockdowns.
Now, more than three years on, a full inquest into Kingsley's death is due to start at Bolton Coroner's Court on Monday, April 25, with the family finally able to see the full circumstances of Kingsley's death brought out into the open.
Rachael Heyes, a solicitor specialising in medical negligence at JWM, the firm representing Kingsley's family at the inquest, carried out an investigation into the boy's care, which said they believe Kingsley would have survived if he'd been given antibiotics when he was first admitted to the neonatal ward. The firm says this information prompted the Trust to accept full liability in October 2021 and last month give an official apology alongside an undisclosed compensation sum.
Several failings were outlined in the Trust's own investigation report, including incomplete neonatal reviews, inaccurate and misleading documentation, and a lack of escalation when there were things to be concerned about in relation to Kingsley's health. The tot was also not referred to a neonatologist after birth, and a sepsis tool was not used on his first day of life - despite several red flags for the serious condition being present.
'We will do everything we can to push for changes'
Kingsley’s father said: “The family can never get over losing Kingsley and his twin sister will never have the joy of growing up with him physically with her. If there are any lessons that can be learned then we ask that this is done, to help to prevent other families from facing a similar tragedy. We will do everything that we can to push for changes, so that other families will not have to go through what we went through.”
Ms Heyes added: “Kingsley’s family has faced unimaginable pain in the wake of his death and have conducted themselves with great dignity throughout their search for answers. It is now three years since they lost Kingsley, in the most tragic of circumstances, and we hope they will be able to obtain further clarification via the inquest process about how this could have happened.”
All evidence gathered by both the Trust and JWM will be analysed at the inquest, which is now set to last for five days instead of two. The hearing will follow Kingsley's life and explore whether there were any missed opportunities to catch the youngster's serious condition earlier, and whether earlier treatment could have prevented his tragic death.
A spokesperson from Bolton FT said: “We would like to extend our deepest condolences to the family and will be cooperating fully with the inquest to understand what we can learn from such tragic circumstances.”
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