A HOSPITAL error saw the body of a deceased 12-year-old child left in a lift outside a mortuary for 12 hours, an inquest has revealed.

Ryan Heffernan-Surplice, 12, died on March 28, 2022, at Shoebury High School, in Delaware Road, due to sudden arrhythmic death syndrome.

The family have had to wait more than a year to get answers before the full inquest took place on Friday.

Sonia Hayes, area coroner for Essex, concluded that Ryan died of sudden arrhythmic death syndrome.

During the inquest, it was revealed that Ryan’s body was left in a lift after a miscommunication between staff at Great Ormond Street Hospital (GOSH).

He arrived on April 4, 2022, and GOSH had half the number of staff on duty that day.

Ryan was due for a CT scan at 12.30pm and was to be brought back to the mortuary in a special lift that could only hold one person.

During the handover, a miscommunication saw Ryan’s attendant get “caught up in ad-hoc duties” and forget to complete the transfer.

The attendant then went off duty and Ryan was left unattended until 22.46pm the same day.

Ryan’s family found out about the ordeal six months later in September 2022.

Catherine Heffernan, Ryan’s mother, said: “We were told after the funeral and everything, I just got out of counselling and got a message from GOSH to call them back.

“This whole situation caused me to have a stress-induced seizure, I fell down the stairs and broke several bones.

“I just hope another family doesn’t have to go through what we have.”

On the day of his death, Ryan was treated by a teacher who performed CPR before paramedics and police arrived at the scene with defibrillators - although no shock was advised.

The Air Ambulance arrived at the scene shortly after and Ryan was taken to Southend Hospital where he died.

Concluding the inquest, Mrs Hayes said: “I am going to say that Ryan died on March 28, 2022, at Southend hospital and his medical cause of death was sudden arrhythmic death syndrome.

“Ryan was playing at school, ate lunch and had no health concerns when he briefly clutched his chest before continuing to play.

“He continued to play for a couple of minutes before leaning against a fence and sliding down to the floor.”

A spokesperson for Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children said: “We are deeply sorry to Ryan’s family for the distress we caused at what was already an unimaginably difficult time for them.  

“We have discussed what happened with Ryan’s family to try to offer some explanation, but in no way to excuse the mistakes we made, including the delays in communication.  

“It should never have happened, and we have taken steps to address the factors that contributed to the incident.”