The Tribune

By KEILE CAMPBELL

Tribune Staff Reporter

kcampbell@tribunemedia.net

EIGHT years after her son’s death, Madeen Bullard says she is still waiting for answers in a medical negligence case she claims began with a critical error at the Princess Margaret Hospital during her pregnancy.

Despite the years of delays, Mrs Bullard said her focus remains on accountability. “There is nothing they can do to bring him back, but accountability, you should hear from me,” she said. “I just want justice for my son.”

Mrs Bullard believed being given the wrong type of blood, receiving A positive despite being O negative, contributed to the complications that followed and ultimately to the death of her son, Joshua Bullard, in 2018, aged just two.

The case, still before the Supreme Court, remains unresolved. Mrs Bullard said she has received no update on its status despite repeatedly seeking answers.

“Right now, everything is like nobody's saying anything,” the 50-year-old mother said.

Joshua exhibited neurological complications at birth, including minimal limb movement, a weak cry and poor reflexes, and required intensive care, according to a clinical summary seen by The Tribune.

Mrs Bullard said she visited her son twice daily during his two-and-a-half years in hospital and did not expect his condition to worsen when she last saw him.

She said she was told of his death the following morning.

Mrs Bullard said the ordeal has taken a significant toll on her family, affecting her health and that of her husband and children.

“It has affected me really badly. It has affected me health-wise,” she said. “I was crying, I couldn’t sleep, I couldn’t eat.”

Her two children, she said, struggled with the loss as they anticipated their younger brother returning home.

“This is a brother that they were happy to have, expecting to come home,” she said. “Like his birthday, you have his first birthday party at the hospital, the second birthday party in the hospital.”

Court documents show the Public Hospital Authority, former Minister of Health Dr Duane Sands and the Attorney General are named as defendants in the matter, which has moved through procedural stages, including summons, affidavits and requests for medical records.

Correspondence indicates the family’s attorneys sought a possible settlement in June 2022. While the Office of the Attorney General acknowledged receipt, Mrs Bullard said no response has been received.

“They keep telling me they will get back to me, they will get back to me, and then months turn into years,” she said.

Documents also attribute earlier delays to the COVID-19 pandemic, as outlined in correspondence from the Attorney General’s Office in 2020.

Mrs Bullard said she has struggled to get consistent updates, both from the government and her own legal representatives.

“It's almost like I have to be reaching out to them rather than them reaching out to me to let me know exactly what's happening,” she said.

The Tribune understands there were plans to transfer Joshua to the United States for further evaluation, but the transfer did not take place.

Mrs Bullard said she has raised the matter with officials across successive administrations, including a meeting with Prime Minister Philip Davis last August.

“We also had a meeting with the Prime Minister last year in August,” she said. “He said that he was going to let the different persons do some investigating on the matter and he himself said that this case is actually too long.”

She said she later followed up in writing and attempted to meet with senior officials but received no update.

The case was also raised with Dr Duane Sands, who she said expressed surprise that it remains unresolved.