Archie Battersbee’s family has spoken out and branded the child’s death as “barbaric” after the boy’s life support was turned off.
The systems keeping 12-year-old Archie alive were turned off on Saturday at 10 am. Just over two hours later, the boy was pronounced dead at his hospital.
The passing comes after Archie’s parents’ lengthy legal battle against Royal London Hospital and several appeals at the High Court, Court of Appeals, and the Supreme Court.
Despite numerous calls for reconsideration, the parents’ pleas to keep their son hooked to life support were rejected and the hospital’s ruling was upheld by the British courts as well as the European Court of Human Rights.
Now, following the boy’s death, his heartbroken family spoke out and vowed to make “something good to come out of this tragedy and the horrendous experience we have been put through by the system.”
“No parent or family must go through this again. We have been forced to fight a relentless legal battle by the Hospital Trust while faced with an unimaginable tragedy,” they said in a statement.
“We were backed into a corner by the system, stripped of all our rights, and have had to fight for Archie’s real ‘best interests’ and right to live with everything stacked against us. This has now happened too often to parents who do not want their critically ill children to have life-support removed.
“The pressure of the process has been unbelievable. There must be an investigation and inquiry through the proper channels on what has happened to Archie, and we will be calling for change.”
The statement comes after Archie’s mom, Hollie Dance, and aunt Ella spoke to the reporters to confirm the boy’s death and take a jab at the national healthcare system.
“It is our deepest sadness to tell you all that Archie passed at 12.15 today. Can I just say that I’m the proudest mum in the world, such a beautiful little boy, and he fought right until the very end – and I am so proud to be his mum,” Hollie said.
The boy’s aunt added: “He was taken off all medication at 10 o’clock. His entire stats remained completely stable for two hours until they reduced ventilation. And then he went completely blue.
“There is absolutely nothing dignified about watching a family member or a child suffocate. We hope no family has to go through what we have been through. It’s barbaric.”
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