'Nobody to blame' for death of toddler Lucie Linforth
Nobody was to blame for the death of a two-year-old girl who died of a heart attack after waiting an hour to see a GP in a surgery, a coroner has said.
Lucie Linforth collapsed after waiting an hour at the Marston Surgery in Bedfordshire. She was taken to Bedford Hospital where she died.
The inquest heard she died from a "serious viral lung infection".
Coroner David Morris said there was "no blame" to the family or anyone "in some way involved in this huge tragedy".
During the three-day hearing, the court heard the toddler had waited more than an hour to see a nurse at the surgery on 5 October.
The child then went into full cardiac arrest so nurse Ellen Clegg called for the surgery GP. They tried to resuscitate Lucie and called for an ambulance.
The coroner was told the "sudden" heart attack last October was brought on by a serious viral infection of her lungs, against a background of a common cold.
Bedford Hospital paediatric consultant, Dr Arora, said he could not say for certain that the toddler would have lived if she had been seen earlier.
Mr Morris said: "The belief that this tragedy would have been avoided if Lucie had been seen an hour earlier is mistaken."
He added her death was "immediate and sudden" and there was "no reason for Lucie's parents to assume anything other than that she would grow up into adulthood".
Speaking after the verdict, solicitor Paul Nicholls said on behalf of Lucie's family: "The events of the 5 October were horrific and nothing that any parent should ever have to encounter.
"Something good must come from such devastating circumstances. We will continue our campaign to prevent other families going through this heartbreak and this is what Lucie would want."