Aussie boy suddenly dies just days before his sister gave birth

A teenage boy whose parents claim hospital staff and paramedics dismissed his symptoms as a stomach bug and the flu died from a brain infection just days later.

Treva Ashton, 15, from Mt Druitt in Sydney‘s west, first went to the doctor with his mum on June 24 after feeling unwell for about three days.

The year nine student initially had a blocked nose but started feeling worse and vomited on the night of June 23.

Treva’s mother Sharon Gauci, 45, said her son was experiencing confusion at their initial visit to their GP, alarming the doctor.

‘Our doctor said “he’s not meant to be here” and gave us a letter to take to the hospital, which said he needed to be looked at straight away because he was “looking very unwell” and “confused”,’ she said.

‘His temperature was 40C, and he had a low heart rate and low blood pressure.’

But at Mt Druitt Hospital later that day, the family claimed they waited for about one-and-a-half hours – at which point they were told to take Treva home to rest and given two Panadol tablets.

Treva’s father, Darren Ashton, 45, said they were told there were 60 patients ahead of them and it could be as long as nine hours before a doctor could attend to him.

The family claims a triage nurse told them that Treva ‘probably just has a stomach bug or the flu’.

‘His eyes were rolling back, and he didn’t know what was happening. He was confused and in a daze,’ Mr Ashton said.

‘He’s a kid, he should have been seen straight away – he’s under 16.’

Ms Gauci said her son was unwilling to wait any longer to see a doctor, and nursing staff said he was OK despite his high temperature, so the family returned home.

But once they got to their house, Treva started vomiting.

‘He kept saying “I don’t feel well. My head, my head”,’ she said.

Ms Gauci said she put a wet facewasher on his head to help with his temperature.

‘But he got chills, so I knew it was an infection,’ she said.

Treva could hardly eat and experienced headaches throughout the night, and was given Sudafed and Panadol.

The next day the symptoms escalated further, with Treva complaining about losing movement in a leg.

Overnight the family was woken by Treva’s screams, and an ambulance was called to the house at 4.37am on June 26.

‘He said his head hurt, as well as his stomach, and he was vomiting,’ she said.

But when the ambulance arrived, Ms Gauchi claims the paramedic was skeptical about the seriousness of the situation and suggested the teen just needed to drink plenty of fluids.

‘The paramedic said “He probably has a stomach bug or the flu and if we take him down to hospital, he will get other bugs”.’

‘But he was very white in the face. And I know my boy. Something wasn’t right,’ she said.

‘You could see it in his eyes, he wouldn’t look at you. I said there was something wrong with his brain.

‘And she (the paramedic) said “no, when you have the flu, you act like that”.’

When Treva’s parents pointed out that he had lost movement in one of his legs, the couple said the paramedic blamed the loss of feeling on numbness.

‘They said “you know how kids are, he could be being overdramatic”,’ Ms Gauci said.

However, Treva’s condition worsened that day and into the night. His family observed that his head was swollen, his vomit contained blood, and he was experiencing body aches.

Treva said his head felt like it was ‘going to explode’.

An ambulance was called at 9.10am on June 27, and arrived soon after.

This time, the paramedics rushed the 15-year-old to Nepean Hospital, where he quickly became unresponsive.

‘I screamed “Treva”. I screamed for the doctors,’ his mother said.

‘I could hear the staff say “we’re going to lose him, we’re going to lose him”‘.

Once the teen was put into an induced coma and onto a ventilator, medical staff administered antibiotics to help kill the infection.

But Treva’s CT scan results showed he had fluid on the brain.

‘They had to rush him into surgery to remove part of his skull so his brain could swell, as well as drain fluid and then put the skull back in later,’ an emotional Ms Gauci said.

‘We were told when they opened him up, his head was full of pus from the infection.’

Remaining sedated in the ICU and on antibiotics, Treva’s surgeons had to perform another operation on July 1.

‘They had to drill a hole in his eyebrow to help ease the pressure and clean out his sinuses,’ MS Gauci said.

But after the sinus operation, the pressure on Treva’s brain kept rising, and the same day, the 15-year-old was rushed back into operating theatre – this time to remove the other front part of his skull.

The family were told part of Treva’s brain was dead, and the surgeon then delivered the tragic news that their boy would not recover.

‘The surgeon said “there was nothing we could do”. The nurses were crying because they don’t normally treat children. Everyone was so upset,’ Mr Ashton said.

‘We also found out that in between the first ambulance and the second one, he had a stroke.

‘He went to get up for a shower at home, and he fell down. He lost movement in his legs. We didn’t know he had a stroke.

‘We were also told that between the first and second operations, he had multiple strokes.’

Treva’s parents said they are still in shock at how quickly everything happened and want answers about how their ‘cuddly, handsome, funny’ boy was treated.

The family is left to wonder if his life could have been saved if he was attended to at the hospital.

‘It could have been prevented. I want justice for my boy,’ Ms Gauci said.

‘He was a very handsome young boy, he was my baby. He always had lots of jokes and loved going on TikTok and doing memes.

‘He was so excited for the school holidays to go bike riding and camping. He loved his dirt bike and was saving for a bigger one because he had a growth spurt.’

While fighting back tears, Ms Gauci said it is eerie now being in the family house without Treva’s presence.

‘I’ve got to walk past his room to get to my room, and I don’t hear him playing on his X-Box,’ she said.

‘I was going through the washing, and I put his clothes on the line. I am doing his washing, and I realised he’s not here, and that’s the worst.’

‘He said “I love you” every night to us. He wouldn’t go to bed without a fist pump for his dad and a kiss for his mum.’

Treva’s parents said they are yet to receive any apologies or explanations from the paramedics or NSW Health, but don’t want to pursue any action until after the funeral.

Despite their tragedy, the family wanted their son to leave a legacy.

‘We donated both his eyes, both kidneys, lungs, heart and pancreas,’ she said.

‘My baby died a hero.’

Treva missed out on meeting the newest members of the family. His life-support was turned off on July 7, and the very next day, his sister gave birth to twin boys.

The family is struggling financially as Ms Gauci is on a disability pension and her partner is her caregiver.

The close family of six, who also lost a son in 2007, said they have no idea how they are going to pay for their second-youngest child’s funeral.

The family has started a GoFundMe to help them meet expenses and has become aware that unauthorised fundraisers have already been started in their son’s name.

‘People are trying to make money from my son. We don’t want anyone fundraising on our behalf, we never gave permission,’ she said.

In a statement provided to Daily Mail Australia, Western Sydney Local Health District and NSW Ambulance said that they ‘extend their sincere condolences to the patient’s loved ones’. 

‘A review is underway and the family will be kept informed as the review progresses. 

‘It is not appropriate to provide further comment at this time.’

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