Perth girl, 13, dies days after being discharged from hospital with flu

A young Aussie girl was found unresponsive in her bed five days after being sent home from the hospital.

A 13-year-old girl has been found dead in her bed, just days after being sent home from hospital.

The teen’s grieving parents are now seeking answers on why their daughter, who was sick with the flu, was discharged.

Sharney Lee Mitchell stayed overnight at Joondalup Health Campus with influenza A on August 12 but was discharged the next day despite still suffering with aches and pains, according to her family who spoke with 7News.

She died five days later at home, with paramedics called to her Perth home unable to save her.

Ramsay Health, which operates the hospital, told the outlet in a statement the patient was medically cleared for discharge, explaining she had no fever and her chest X-ray was normal.

The exact cause of death is yet to be determined.

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Sharney Lee Mitchell, 13, died on Sunday. Picture: 7News

The young girl’s family spoke out to raise awareness about how serious influenza can be.

Influenza, known as the flu, is a highly contagious disease spread by body fluids from infected people.

Symptoms can include fever, body aches, a runny nose and sore throat.

Australian health authorities say vaccination is the best protection against the flu and recommend a flu vaccine each year for everyone aged six months and older to protect against the most common strains of the virus.

There are many different strains of influenza virus and they can change every year.

There have been 302,952 cases of influenza confirmed by laboratory tests this year, which is already higher than the 289,128 cases recorded last year, according to Australia’s National Notifiable Disease Surveillance System.

It is the highest number since 2019, when there were 313,453 cases recorded.

Of the more than 300,000 cases this year, NSW has had the most at 145,976. In Western Australia that number is 11,274.

Seven people died of the flu in Western Australia in the first seven months of the year.

Originally published as Perth girl, 13, dies days after being discharged from hospital with flu