A baby boy died from meningitis after hospital doctors twice failed to spot the symptoms and dismissed his mother’s fears as ‘hysterical’.

As the little boy screamed in pain in a waiting room, one nurse even suggested his parents wheel him around in a buggy because he was ‘a bit loud’.

Hours later, 13-month-old Bobby Bushell was dead. The appalling standard of care he received was laid bare yesterday after his parents won a five-figure sum in damages from the hospital trust.

The tragedy unfolded on August 12, 2007 when Bobby became ill at home near Doncaster. 

His mother contacted an NHS out-of-hours service and took him to a local surgery where her own GP examined him at around 4.40pm.

Although he did not diagnose meningitis, the GP advised Miss Hooks and her partner Craig Bushell to take Bobby to Doncaster Royal Infirmary.

They arrived at around 5.20pm and he was seen by a senior house doctor

Despite the little boy having three non-blanching rashes on his leg and chest – a classic meningitis symptom – the doctor decided only to monitor his condition.

Miss Hooks, 29, a former retail worker, said: ‘He said he had a viral infection. I immediately asked for a second opinion. He told me a second doctor would only agree with him.’