Grieving parents blame hospital over two-year-old's death

Two grieving parents are calling for an independent investigation into a Sydney hospital after the death of their two-year-old son. 

Elouise and Danny Massa took their son Joe to the emergency department at Northern Beaches Hospital on the morning of September 14th after he had spent the night vomiting.

The toddler had hypovolemia, a condition that occurs when the body loses too much fluid, and later tragically died.

Joe's parents claim the hospital failed their son "at every level" and he would still be alive if he had received the proper care. 

In a statement provided to 9News, the parents said Joe's heart rate was at 183 beats per minute when they arrived at the emergency department, yet he was misclassified as a low priority, category three patient, instead of red zone, category two.

The parents went on to allege that the Northern Beaches hospital missed critical warning signs, including when Joe lost consciousness, and his mother's requests for an IV drip were denied.

"I can't tell you what it's like to hold your son in your arms … to be told to sit in your chair while your child is agitated, going in and out of consciousness, lips are turning blue," Mrs Massa told 2GB on Thursday morning.

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"To be told to wait and have your baby literally dying in your arms is unfathomable and should not be happening at any hospital."

For almost three hours, Joe was not hooked up to monitoring equipment while sitting in an emergency department chair. 

A serious adverse event review conducted by the hospital after Joe's death identified multiple failures, with the report claiming there was a "delay and failure to recognise deterioration" in Joe's condition.

Healthscope, which operates the hospital, said in a statement: "Northern Beaches Hospital offers its deepest condolences to the Massa family for the loss of their son, Joe. We recognise Joe's death has caused unimaginable heartache and grief for the family."

"We have met with the family to apologise and hear directly about their tragic experience and to discuss the findings of the Serious Adverse Event Review."

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"We will continue to support the family in any way that we can as we implement the improvements identified in the review, including improvements around triaging processes and internal escalation processes."