Child safety officer wrongly marked Elizabeth Struhs safe one day after hospital coma
A child safety officer wrongly marked Elizabeth Struhs safe one day after she arrived in a coma.
Elizabeth Struhs was six years old when she arrived at Toowoomba hospital in a coma on 17 July 2019 with diabetic ketoacidosis, a life-threatening condition caused by lack of insulin. The next day, she was moved to the Queensland children's hospital in Brisbane.
A child safety officer assessed her and marked her as safe. But the officer later told the court Elizabeth should have been marked as unsafe because they lacked sufficient information about her situation.
Specialist children's doctors had warned it would not be safe for her to go home unless her mother changed her beliefs about rejecting medicine. But Elizabeth was sent back to her family anyway under a voluntary agreement.
She died on 7 January 2022 while her parents and members of their religious sect prayed for her healing instead of giving her insulin.
- 6 years old
- Age on admission
- 17 July 2019
- Date admitted to hospital
- 7 January 2022
- Date of death
- Diabetic ketoacidosis
- Medical condition
Why it mattersThe inquest is examining widespread failures in child safety assessment that allowed a child at serious risk to remain in a dangerous home.
AustraliaQueensland's child safety system faces scrutiny over how critical assessments are made and whether warning signs from medical professionals receive adequate weight in protection decisions.
✓ Claims checked against the source. checked 2 h ago
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