Ipswich Crown Court has heard that the death of an eight-year-old boy could have been prevented had an eye specialist conducted a thorough examination.
Vincent Barker died in July 2012. Five months prior to this, he had undergone a routine eye test at a Boots Opticians in Upper Brook Street, Ipswich, Suffolk.
The court heard that the examination, completed by locum optometrist Honey Rose, was so below standards that it could be classed as “criminal.”
Rose has been charged with gross negligence manslaughter.
According to The Metro, prosecutor Jonathan Rees told the court that the prosecution “allege that Vinnie’s death was preventable and would have been prevented had the defendant, Ms Rose, done her job properly.”
Vinnie’s death was a result of hydrocephalus — a condition of excessive accumulation of fluid in the brain. The excess fluid is cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) — a clear fluid that surrounds the brain and spinal cord. The excessive accumulation of CSF results in an abnormal widening of spaces in the brain ventricles. This creates harmful, often fatal, pressure on the tissues of the brain.
The court has heard that if Rose had conducted a proper examination, swelling on the optic discs would have been detected. It was noted by the court that images taken during the examination show “obvious abnormalities” in each of the child’s eyes.
Rees told the court that Rose’s failure to detect the swelling of Vinnie’s optic discs was a “significant contributory factor” to his death, and that had she noticed the swelling the boy would undoubtedly have survived.
Rose claims that she was not shown the correct images of Vinnie’s eyes and that an error had led her to view an older image of the boy’s eyes. She claims that had she seen the correct and most recent retinal images, she would have made an emergency referral that day.
