Daniel Klosi with his mother Lindita Alushi

PARENTS of a four-year-old boy who was misdiagnosed and sent home from hospital hours before his death are demanding that lessons are learned from the tragedy and more is done to check for vital signs of a deadly illness in A&E.

Daniel Klosi, who had autism and lived in Kentish Town, succumbed to sepsis after repeated efforts over four days to get him basic tests the family say could have saved his life.

They said their boy was sent home by Royal Free children’s A&E three days before his death and then again on the day itself.

Both times he was classed as “unwell”, according to medical documents, seen by the New Journal, with a suspected low-level viral infection and prescribed Calpol and Nurofen.

Each time the parents felt sure there was something seriously wrong and on the last day they returned for a third time to the hospital, waiting four hours in the A&E before their son was finally admitted and rushed into intensive care.

He died just after midnight on April 2.

Questions about whether fully qualified paediatricians assessed Daniel are being investigated by the NHS. A coroner’s post mortem is yet to take place but the family have been told that the cause is believed to be sepsis potentially triggered by a “Strep A” infection.

In a heartbreaking interview this week, Daniel’s parents told the New Journal how they felt they had done everything they could to save their son whose last words to them were: “I am big and strong.”

Mother Lindita Alushi, who works in a pharmacy and was a fully qualified doctor when she lived in Albania, said: “Nothing will bring Daniel back but we do not want this to happen to anyone else. We were being very careful parents. We did all we could.

“But we were told ‘don’t worry it’s going to be fine’. We want to let other parents know about sepsis and that things might not be fine even if the hospital say it is.”

She added: “Ask for blood tests. Go to a different hospital if you need to.”

Daniel Klosi

Daniel’s mother said that she had taken some comfort from the fact that they repeatedly ignored advice to stay at home, adding: “If we had not, we would have lived with that regret for the rest of our lives.”

Sepsis, also known as septicaemia, is an extreme response by the body to an infection triggering a chain reaction that often starts in the lung, urinary tract, skin, or gastrointestinal tract.

Although immediately life-threatening it is notoriously difficult to spot especially in young children as early symptoms are fatigue and breathlessness.

Warnings have been circulating in Camden in recent months about the Strep A infection that is known to be a number one cause of sepsis. Speaking about their son, the family recalled how he was enjoying life at nursery in Ferdinand Street and progressing well in the face of an autism diagnosis and despite having his development affected by having to stay at home during the Covid pandemic.

He loved cooking, animals and playing with his marbles.

Ms Alushi said: “Daniel was a beautiful boy. He was autistic. But he was very clever, brilliant academically. He could read at the age of two-and-a-half.

“The nursery said they could not believe their eyes because he could read full sentences. He loved animals. He loved cooking. He loved making cakes, chocolate brownies. He said he wanted to be a chef. “When he was helping baking, he would ask mummy, is it thick enough?”

His mother added: “He was a soft child. He liked to play with his friends, he like to sit down for story time. He was always asking progressive things. Very curious. He loved experiments, mixing colours. He loved marbles and maths.”

The family home has large numbers drawn on the wall to help with his development as an autistic child, and many of his favourite books were on the shelves.

SEE ALSO COUPLE ARE HEARTBROKEN TO SEE SEPSIS TRAGEDY REPEAT AGAIN AND AGAIN

Ms Alushi talked about how her son had gone into hospital on the Sunday and had been discharged with croup – a common childhood illness.

The following Thursday they took him to the A&E in the middle of the night after his breathing deteriorated. He was discharged again, but on the Friday his mother said she was concerned as he was not eating and after another worrying night they took him back in on Saturday around 1pm.

Despite the repeated attempts to get him properly seen and given blood tests that might have revealed the condition, he was discharged once again.

Once again, the family took him back shortly after at 4.30pm. He was admitted after four hours waiting in A&E and, after turning blue, died just after midnight.

Ms Alushi added: “His last words, just seconds before he died, were ‘I am big and strong’. Of course they said they were very sorry – but it was too late.

“My perception is they did not take us seriously. On the Saturday especially, they could have done much more. They didn’t recognise what was going on. “When they finally took the blood tests, I think at that stage they panicked as they knew something was seriously wrong. With sepsis, the hours and the minutes count.”

Ms Alushi, who is training herself become a junior doctor, added: “We are 100 per cent it was not intentional, no one would do that. But I know what is going on and that if you are in this position you have to be responsible.

“You have to ask for advice of seniors. Or you don’t go to work in A&E.”

Daniel and Lindita, with the boy’s father, Kastriot

The junior doctor strike had not begun that weekend but all NHS hospitals are struggling at the moment with a staffing crisis that is not just affecting numbers but also the balance of experience in key hospital wards.

Kastriot Klosi, Daniel’s father, said: “One thing is that it is very difficult to keep a child with autism in an A&E for so many hours. You cannot go out because your name might be called. But to keep him still in there would be so difficult.

“You put your faith in the hospital. You are going in asking for help. All you know is the child is sick and we need someone to look at him. We just want to stop this happening to other parents. Lessons must be learned.”

A Royal Free London spokesperson said: “We would like to share our sincere and heartfelt condolences with Daniel’s family at this incredibly difficult time for them.

“We are sorry Daniel died while under our care and an investigation is under way, the findings of which will be shared with his family.

“We have been in regular contact with Daniel’s parents to offer our support. We are deeply sorry for their loss.”