Nurse accused of killing boy, 7, who died after his breathing monitor was turned off for TWO HOURS
Nurse charged with murder of boy, 7, who died after his breathing monitor was turned off for TWO HOURS
- James Dwerryhouse died after his monitor was turned off following surgery
- Nurse Anuradha Bhupathiraju, 62, is charged with manslaughter
A nurse has appeared in court and is accused of murdering a seven-year-old boy at Britain’s largest private children’s hospital.
Anuradha Bhupathiraju, 62, is charged with gross negligence and manslaughter after the death of James Dwerryhouse, whose sleeping gear was reportedly left unattended for nearly three hours. He died of a catastrophic brain injury.
The nurse has now appeared before Westminster magistrates who are accused of causing James’ death by leaving his monitor off without a doctor’s permission.
The boy, who suffered from numerous health problems that required feeding through a tube, had been in hospital for routine bowel surgery.
Suffering from sleep apnea, which can cause life-threatening respiratory arrest, he was hooked up to equipment that alerted doctors to any deterioration in his breathing while he slept.
James Dwerryhouse, 7, (pictured) died after his monitor was turned off at Portland Hospital in London
But the vital equipment was said to have been removed in the early hours.
His father John told his son’s inquest that after returning from surgery on the morning of August 25, 2016, his son was energized and sitting in his bed playing with his Playmobil figures.
Mr Dwerryhouse said he then received a call at around 4.20am to say that James was not well and that he and his wife Marguerite should come to hospital immediately.
When the couple arrived, their son’s eyes were half closed, he was covered in a rash and his dilated pupils indicated he was brain dead, Mr Dwerryhouse said.
James Dwerryhouse, 7, (pictured) died of brain injury due to sleep apnea following surgery on the morning of August 25, 2016
Anuradha Bhupathiraju, 62, a nurse at Portland Hospital, is charged with manslaughter
James was taken to Treehouse Hospice in his hometown of Ipswich, where he died on August 28.
His 2017 inquest ruled that he had hypoxic-ischemic brain injury due to sleep apnea.
Bhupathiraju, a nurse with more than three decades of experience, spoke in court on Tuesday to confirm her name, date of birth and address.
Senior District Judge Paul Goldspring has released her on bail ahead of a hearing at Southwark Crown Court next month. She is not allowed to leave the UK and has to hand over her passport to the police.