• Doctor expresses regret after young man’s death
• High court orders reinvestigation

Dr. Katy Midwinter, who oversaw the treatment of a 14-year-old boy who later died from meningitis, expressed “deep regret” for stopping his antibiotic treatment, according to statements heard during a hearing.

Callum Hubbard, from the Dronfield area in the UK, died on February 8, 2014, three months after undergoing ear surgery.

The doctor, who performed the operation, explained that at the time she believed she had completely removed the infection and that it was “safe” to stop the antibiotics.

During a Chesterfield court hearing, Dr. Midwinter said she “regrets very much” not continuing the antibiotics, confirming that she had learned a great deal about meningitis and realized it would have been better to continue treatment.

This came on the third day of the second investigation into Callum’s death, after the High Court ordered a reinvestigation at the family’s request to examine the circumstances of his treatment in greater detail.

The doctor explained that she first saw Callum a day after he was admitted to Chesterfield Royal Hospital on November 17, 2013, and that he had partial facial paralysis on the left side due to a growth resembling a tumor in the middle ear that required removal.

During the surgery, she removed a large amount of infected tissue and pus, and after cleaning the ear, believed the infection had ended and that it was “safe” to stop antibiotics, considering this standard practice after removing an infection.

When asked about the need to consult pediatric specialists before stopping treatment, the doctor admitted she should have contacted them, saying, “I now realize I was more confident than necessary in assessing the situation in front of me, and I should have sought alternative explanations.”

Callum was discharged from the hospital on November 19, but three days later he was moved to the emergency department unconscious, and later transferred to Sheffield Children’s Hospital, where he underwent a series of surgeries but never regained consciousness. He remained under medical care until February 2014, when it was determined that no further treatment was possible.

Pediatrician Steve Conway stated that Callum “most likely would not have died if he had continued taking antibiotics.”

The jury is expected to deliver their final verdict after reviewing all the evidence.