Baby's death raises doubts over health hotlines.(Brief article)

Australian Doctor,  January, 2007  by HIngston, Chris

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By Chris HIngston

THE death of a Queensland baby has called into question the effectiveness of 24-hour triage helplines just months before the planned rollout of a national health telephone network.

The one-year-old boy died last month after his mother was allegedly told he did not need hospital care by an operator on Queensland's 24-hour hotline, 13HEALTH.

The mother was questioned for 15 minutes on the baby's health, then advised by the nurse operator to see a GP the next morning, or to seek immediate medical attention if the baby's condition worsened.

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