Deceased
PCH
Demographics
14y, female
Coroner
State Coroner Judge Liberty Sanger
Date of death
2025-01-25
Finding date
2026-03-23
Cause of death
Drowning in a person with epilepsy
AI-generated summary
PCH, a 14-year-old girl in out-of-home care with a history of epilepsy, drowned in a river while washing her hair during a family camping trip. She had experienced increased seizure frequency in October-November 2024, prompting a medication change from sodium valproate to lamotrigine. By December 2024, seizures appeared well-controlled with no further episodes reported. The coroner was unable to determine definitively whether drowning resulted from an accidental incident or an unwitnessed seizure. Her epilepsy management plan recommended supervision for water activities. The coroner found no prevention opportunities and no evidence of negligent care. Medical management and treatment were appropriate throughout.
AI-generated summary and tagging — may contain inaccuracies; refer to original finding for legal purposes. Report an inaccuracy.
Specialties
Drugs involved
Clinical conditions
17y · Male·drowning
NJC, aged 17, drowned in Lake Nagambie while subject to a Care by Secretary Order. He was in stable kinship care with his sister and receiving appropriate support from Child Protection and Anglicare. At a family wedding …
7y · Male·multiple injuries sustained in a motor vehicle collision (passenger)
A 7-year-old boy died in a head-on motor vehicle collision after his father deliberately drove their newly purchased car into an oncoming truck. The father had recently experienced severe stress following his partner's d…
37y · Male·Multiple injuries sustained in a motor vehicle incident (driver)
A 37-year-old man died in a deliberate head-on motor vehicle collision three days after his partner died from metastatic cancer. He was the sole carer for his 7-year-old son with autism and intellectual disability. The c…
Source and disclaimer
This page reproduces or summarises information from publicly available findings published by Australian coroners' courts. Coronial is an independent educational resource and is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or acting on behalf of any coronial court or government body.
Content may be incomplete, reformatted, or summarised. Some material may have been redacted or restricted by court order or privacy requirements. Always refer to the original court publication for the authoritative record.
Copyright in original materials remains with the relevant government jurisdiction. AI-generated summaries and tagging are for educational purposes only, may contain inaccuracies, and must not be treated as legal documents. We welcome feedback for correction — report an inaccuracy here.