Jillian Skinner says she is ‘profoundly sorry’ for the family of the baby who died, and the family of the baby in a critical condition, after nitrous oxide was dispensed through a neonatal outlet at Bankstown-Lidcome hospital. Photograph: Dan Himbrechts/AAP
A baby has died and another is in a critical condition after they were given nitrous oxide instead of oxygen at a Sydney hospital.
The New South Wales health minister, Jillian Skinner, said she was “profoundly sorry” for the families and it was an installation error by BOC Limited that led to the wrong gas being emitted.
The babies who were given nitrogen gas – also known as laughing gas – were born in June and July this year but the wrong gas had been installed last year and not picked up by staff.
One of the babies died on Friday, while the other is still fighting for life in hospital.
“I am profoundly sorry for the families of a newborn baby who died and another who was severely affected after the wrong gas was dispensed through a neonatal resuscitation outlet at Bankstown-Lidcombe hospital,” Skinner said on Monday night.
“I deeply regret these families have suffered through such a devastating error. NSW Health will do all it can to support them.”
The families were told of the wrongly installed gas outlet in discussions over the weekend that Skinner referred to as “open disclosure of the facts around the births”.
The oxygen outlet was incorrectly installed and certified by BOC Limited in July 2015, according to Skinner.
“The error was discovered after a pediatrician raised concerns about the unexpected death of the second baby,” she said. “Testing of the gas outlets found one oxygen outlet was emitting nitrous oxide instead of oxygen.”
No other baby received gas from the affected outlet.
The legal general council for NSW Health has written to BOC Limited demanding urgent advice on how the error occurred and if there are systemic issues at other hospital sites serviced by BOC.
There will also be a formal investigation into whether the hospital staff followed protocols that may have the detected the installation error last year.
Bankstown-Lidcombe hospital has checked all eight theatres and found no further faults.
Every medical gas outlet installed in a NSW Health facility commissioned under the current government is being checked.