Get you up to speed: “Our son passed away after being dismissed from A&E – we seek answers.”
Yusuf Nazir’s family demands answers regarding his death after he was sent home from Rotherham Hospital, with Health Secretary Wes Streeting involved in the ongoing inquiry.
Rotherham Hospital’s chief executive announced an independent inquiry into the death of Yusuf Nazir, emphasising the need for transparency and accountability in the healthcare system.
Yusuf Nazir’s family continues to seek answers as Sheffield Coroners’ Court prepares for an independent inquest into his death following systemic failures at Rotherham Hospital.
What we know so far
The family of five-year-old Yusuf Nazir, who died after being sent home from A&E, is demanding answers as an inquest into his death approaches. Yusuf passed away at Sheffield Children’s Hospital on November 23, 2022, following an eight-day ordeal after being sent home from Rotherham Hospital with a prescription for antibiotics.
His family believes systemic failures across both hospitals contributed to his death. Yusuf’s uncle, Zaheer Ahmed, expressed the emotional toll of the situation, stating, “It’s been a very, very tough fight… we just want the answers that we deserve for Yusuf.” He emphasised the need for clarity regarding the circumstances of Yusuf’s passing.
The family has consistently said that they were informed there were ‘no beds and not enough doctors’ at Rotherham’s emergency department. Despite their concerns, Yusuf was discharged with a severe tonsillitis diagnosis. After further deterioration, he was taken to Sheffield Children’s Hospital, where he was admitted but ultimately succumbed to multi-organ failure.
In a report released in July 2025, it was determined that the family’s concerns, specifically the mother’s instinct regarding Yusuf’s condition, were largely overlooked across medical services. The inquest is expected to examine these failures comprehensively.
Recently, the family discussed their concerns with Health Secretary Wes Streeting, who has assured them that he is taking the matter ‘very, very seriously.’
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‘Our boy died after he was sent home from A&E – we want the answers we deserve’ | News UK
The family of a five-year-old boy who died eight days after he was sent home from A&E have demanded answers ahead of an inquest into his death.
Yusuf Nazir died at Sheffield Children’s Hospital on November 23, 2022, eight days after he was seen at Rotherham Hospital and sent home with antibiotics.
His family believe his death was a result of system failures across two hospitals and other services.
Speaking outside Sheffield Coroners’ Court on Monday, Yusuf’s uncle Zaheer Ahmed said: ‘It’s been a very, very tough fight, coming up to four years now since Yusuf died.
‘So it’s been a very tough fight to get here, and we just want the answers that we deserve for Yusuf. We just want to know how Yusuf has died.’
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Mr Ahmed said the family is ‘reliving’ Yusuf’s death every day in real time, but stressed that he doesn’t want another family to go through what they are.
He also said he did not believe two earlier reports into Yusuf’s death were independent, adding: ‘The inquest is independent, so they will look at it completely independently and make a decision on how Yusuf has died.’
Yusuf, who had asthma, was taken to a GP with a sore throat and feeling unwell on November 15, 2022.
He was prescribed antibiotics by an advanced nurse practitioner.
Later that evening, his parents took him to Rotherham Hospital’s urgent and emergency care centre, where he was seen in the early hours of the morning after a six-hour wait.
He was discharged with a diagnosis of severe tonsillitis and an extended prescription of antibiotics.
Yusuf’s family have always said they were told ‘there are no beds and not enough doctors’ in the emergency department at Rotherham, and that Yusuf should have been admitted and given intravenous antibiotics.
Two days later, Yusuf was given further antibiotics by his GP for a possible chest infection, but his family became so concerned they called an ambulance and insisted the paramedics take him to Sheffield Children’s Hospital rather than Rotherham.
Yusuf was admitted to the intensive care unit on November 21 but developed multi-organ failure and suffered several cardiac arrests, which he did not survive.
The new report published in July 2025 concluded: ‘Our primary finding is that the parental concerns, particularly the mother’s instinct that her child was unwell, were repeatedly not addressed across services.’
In December, the family met Health Secretary Wes Streeting in London and said he was taking their concerns over Yusuf’s death ‘very, very seriously.’