Trust withheld information from inquest, children’s death probe told

Many more child deaths may have been caused by hyponatraemia but never disclosed by the authorities, the chairman of a public inquiry has warned. John O’Hara QC was speaking as it emerged that a health trust in Northern Ireland withheld evidence from an inquest probing the death of a nine-year-old girl. Mr O’Hara said hospital managers had also rewritten statements which were later submitted to inquests. He was addressing an inquiry which is focusing on the deaths of three children in hospitals in Northern Ireland. It is also looking at the events following the death of another infant and issues arising from the death of a fifth child. The issues of hyponatraemia and fluid management are...