THE PARENTS of an 11-year-old girl from Warwick who died hours after being diagnosed with constipation and sent home from hospital have spoken of their ‘devastating’ loss – and asked lawyers to secure answers.
Annabel Greenhalgh was taken to the emergency department at Warwick Hospital complaining of abdominal pain on October 13 2022. She was discharged home later that evening.
Annabel’s father, Craig, found her unresponsive the following morning. Emergency services were called but Annabel couldn’t be resuscitated. She was pronounced dead shortly afterwards.
Following their daughter’s death Craig and her mother, Josie, instructed expert medical negligence lawyers at
Irwin Mitchell to investigate. The couple have now spoken of the “gaping hole” their only child’s death has left in their lives. They’re also hoping that an upcoming inquest into her death will provide them with answers.
Emma Rush, the specialist medical negligence lawyer representing Annabel’s family, said: “Josie and Craig understandably remain devastated at losing their little girl so suddenly and tragically. They also continue to have a number of questions over what happened to her.
“While nothing can bring Annabel back, the inquest is a major milestone in being able to provide her family with the answers they deserve.
“If, during the course of the inquest any issues in the care provided to Annabel are identified, it’s vital that lessons are learned to improve patient safety.”
Alcester Grammar School pupil Annabel had a complex medical history. Between 2017 and 2021, she experienced multiple episodes of severe abdominal pain, some of which required hospital admission.
Josie said: “Annabel was an incredible child and loved by all who met her. She was gentle, phenomenally bright, creative, fun and always inclusive of everyone. She absolutely loved her music, her fashion, her art, her friends, and her beloved cat Reuben.
“She was our greatest gift and brought so much love, joy and happiness to our lives. Since losing her, much of our days have been filled with distress, emptiness and sorrow.”
Craig added: “When we were told we could take Annabel home from hospital, we trusted that there was nothing serious going on. To wake up the next morning and find her unresponsive was absolutely devastating and something we still struggle to comprehend.
“Every day since then, we’ve wondered if more could have been done to save our little girl. She was our only child and we still have so many unanswered questions around what happened to her.
“We know that hearing everything again at the inquest will be incredibly difficult, but it’s something we need to do to honour our daughter and get the answers we’ve been seeking for more than 18 months.”
An Inquest into Annabel’s death is due to be heard at Coventry Coroners’ Court on Friday (June 14).
