Teen discharged from A&E with broken leg later picked up by Dungannon Minor Injuries says dad

Chris Hyde, has spoken of his disbelief after his daughter was allegedly sent home from Craigavon’s Emergency Department with a broken leg after being told it was just a bad sprain.

He said he took the youngster to hospital at lunch time last Monday with a swollen ankle.

According Chris, the teenager was x-rayed and then seen again in the hospital’s treatment room, where she was informed she had a badly sprained ankle and that it would be ok in a few days.

Concerned that the swelling hadn’t gone down and that the bruising was very bad after a week, the teen’s parents then took her to South Tyrone Minor Injuries Unit in Dungannon, where Chris said: “They x-rayed her and said it was broken.

“A&E was packed last Monday but that’s no excuse for my daughter being sent home with a broken leg,” he added.

“She had gone back to school that week and was using a crutch to get about, not realising it was broken.

“If she had gone over on it again, she could have ended up in hospital getting an operation.”

The young woman is now in plaster from her knee to her toes, and her dad he is still in shock at what happened.

“I was very, very angry.

“If this has happened to my daughter how many other parents has it happened to?” he said.

The Southern Health and Social Care Trust confirmed it had received a complaint from Mr Hyde and that an investigation would be carried out and a response issued after it was completed.

In April this paper reported that South Tyrone Minor Injuries Unit is the busiest in Northern Ireland.

Staff at the unit treated 25.666 patients in the past year.

The service is provided by emergency nurse practitioners, nursing staff and health care assistants and is open every day from 9am to 9pm, Monday to Friday, including Bank Holidays and 10am to 6pm Saturday and Sunday.

The unit has purpose-built facilities including x-ray, pharmacy and outpatient clinics, and a range of support services.