Irish tourist died on flight home after his appendix burst
»»Grieving family sue hospital in the Algarve over son’s death »»Mother fights back tears recalling agony he suffered
THE family of an Irish tourist who died from untreated peritonitis is suing an Algarve hospital for €500,000 over his death.
Robbie Byrne was pronounced dead when his plane landed at Dublin Airport less than 48 hours after he sought urgent medical attention at Faro’s main public hospital.
The 27-year-old window fitter’s friends called for an ambulance when he woke up with crippling stomach pains just over halfway through their week-long Portuguese holiday.
Robbie, from Sallynoggin, passed away as the Aer Lingus flight began its descent in the early hours of June 18, 2022.
Mum-of-three Sonya, 56, said: “I’ve worked tirelessly to try to get answers but I’ve not spoken publicly until now.
“Robbie had a burst appendix and the poison burnt his oesophagus and burnt a hole through his bowel.
“He was a slight asthmatic but otherwise a healthy young lad. All of this came on very suddenly.
“He’d gone out with his friends the Wednesday night and they called for an ambulance after waking up early and hearing him wailing with pain.
“They were instructed not to follow him to hospital because of Covid.
“After he returned, he told them he had been left alone on a trolley, without the glasses he normally wore and unable to make himself understood as he didn’t speak Portuguese.
“Robbie couldn’t talk to me directly by then because he had no energy.
“I initially put it all down to dehydration because of the heat and I was in a bit of a panic and with his friends telling me they’d done nothing for him at the hospital my focus at that point was just on getting Robbie home.
“None of us knew how sick he was because he hadn’t got the information that could and should have saved him.
“I’m so angry now I have the fuller picture.”
Robbie boarded his plane home in agony after checking himself out of the Algarve University Hospital Centre in what his mum has described as an act of desperation at the appalling treatment she said her “terrified” son had received.
Lawyer Alexandre Martins lodged a lawsuit on behalf of Sonya and her husband Nicky last month at a court in Lisbon.
He said: “Robert experienced nearly 48 hours of suffering, without being prescribed medication to alleviate it.
“This prolonged pain and the pain his parents suffered knowing the circumstances in which their son died must be compensated.
“We would understand it if Robert had been in the middle of a desert but there’s no way to explain how anyone can be abandoned inside a hospital in a civilised country.
“Information is essential in a case like this. He was unaware his life was at risk and, feeling abandoned, ended up turning his back on the hospital without knowing the risk.”
The lawsuit has been filed against the health authority which runs the hospital and the A&E doctor who saw Robbie.
Mr Martins claims in legal papers the medic examined him just after midday on June 16, 2022 and noted Robbie had a hard abdomen that could be an acute abdomen, but did not inform him of the severity of his conditions, conduct more tests or give him pain relief.
Sonya said: “My son should never have been allowed on that plane.
“He fainted in the boarding area and they asked for an ambulance and got the Red Cross.
“Our compensation demand is €500,000 because I wanted to go to the highest level.
“This is not about money but about hitting a big corporation where it hurts most – in the pockets. They’ll never feel the pain we do which will never go away.
“Robbie was an angel, our baby, an amazing kid and such a genuine and lovely person. We want and need justice to make sure we get change.
“People go away on holiday to Portugal and I’m concerned they’re not being looked after properly.
“My opinion is his death was preventable and he should have had surgery straight after he got to hospital.
“I don’t want anyone else to go through what we have as a family. I want to fix the wrongs so other people don’t end up like my boy.”
In a statement, the health authority said it “naturally regretted” this “personal tragedy” but said the fact the lawsuit had already been lodged meant it couldn’t comment fully.
It added: “From the preliminary assessment carried out internally, there is no suspicion that calls into question the quality of service.
“The user abandoned the service, which is why we stand ready, with serenity, to clarify this situation in the appropriate instances when required.”
Robert endured 48 hours of suffering with no medication SONYA BYRNE
ON SON’S TRAGIC DEATH