BODY FOUND
OUR HOLLY
Mystery in the bush at Londonderry
Inspiring local is face of special campaign
PAGE 3
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MARCH 23 2012 ISSUE 1045
PROUDLY INDEPENDENT CIRCULATION: 59,400
THE HEARTBEAT OF PENRITH
Nobody to blame No closure for parents following inquest into tragic death CASSANDRA O CONNOR
F
rustrated and upset, the Costa family’s search for closure remains unsettled following the unexpected death of their daughter Chanel, 4, in 2008. The fi ndings of a coronial inquiry into the circumstances of her death, held at Glebe Coroner’s Court this week, have given the family little understanding as many questions surrounding the treatment and state of NSW’s health system remain unanswered. “We expected so much more… the coroner, Carmel Forbes, had the power to change the NSW health system but she didn’t. The health system failed us and now the legal system has too,” explained dismayed father, Steve Costa. Th ree medical specialists asked to review the case suggested that Chanel may have had Reye’s syndrome, which has no known cause but commonly occurs in five to 14-year-olds with symptoms of rapid deterioration of the liver and brain. In her fi ndings presented to the court on Monday, Ms Forbes said: “Chanel’s death has been treated very seriously… in all the circumstances, I am of the view the management of Chanel’s condition could not be criticised or said to have caused her rapid cerebral oedema [swelling on the brain]”. But recounting the dreadful days of July 2008, Mr Costa said he did not understand how the coroner could fi nd no fault with the treatment given to Chanel. In the early hours of July 15, 2008, concerned parents, Steve and Angela, took their daughter to the emergency ward of Nepean Hospital seeking treatment for symptoms she developed during the night – a high temperature and vomiting. She had been to the doctors three times in the past week and had been given antibiotics. But upon arrival at the local hospital, the family had to wait 1.5 hours before Chanel was looked at. “Th is has not been a major issue,” ruled Ms Forbes, citing that since 2008 emergency wait times at the hospital have signifi cantly decreased. Continues on page 3
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TAKEN TOO SOON: PENRITH’S CHANEL COSTA DIED IN 2008
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