A Perth hospital sent baby boy home saying he was 'teething'. Three days later, he died.

Three days, two hospitals, one doctor’s surgery, an ambulance trip.

That’s what it took until someone would take Nicole Thompson seriously.

But by the time they did, it was too late.

Malakai Matui Paraone died in Princess Margaret Hospital on Friday. Via GoFundMe.

The distraught young mother of two is now demanding answers after two hospitals and a doctor’s surgery who sent her sick seven-month-old baby home dismissing his symptoms as ‘teething’ and a ‘virus’, missing the meningococcal symptoms that he died of just days later.

“If I was taken seriously by medical staff within the first three hospital visits my baby would be here now,” she said.

Malakai Matui Paraone died in Princess Margaret Hospital on Friday. But it had been a five day agonising fight to get his symptoms recognised.

Nicole Thompson and her partner, Keps Paraone, from Perth first noticed their baby son, Malakai was ill last Monday.

Nicole Thompson and her partner, Keps Paraone with Malaki and his brother. Via Facebook.

They took him to Midland Hospital with a fever, rash and restricted movement along the right side of his body. Despite their concerns however the staff at the hospital dismissed the little baby’s symptoms telling Nicole he was ‘teething’ and, she claims, laughing at her insistent questions.

When she pointed out to medical staff he was not moving the right side of his body they said that perhaps the seven-month-old had pulled his elbow.

The worried parents were sent home.

On Tuesday Malaki got sicker, so Nicole getting even more concerned, called an ambulance to rush him to Princess Margaret Hospital.

Upon arrival the baby’s heart rate was 190bpm. Aaccording to Nine News he was assessed on a change table in a bathroom because there were no beds available.  He was given Nurofen to reduce his heart rate and then sent home with Panadol, again for ‘teething.’

Doctor kept telling her he had teething problems. Via Facebook.

But again the next day, Wednesday Malaki wasn’t improving. So Nicole took him to their GP, her mother’s instinct saying there had to be another answer but again, she was sent home, the GP saying it was just a virus.

Nothing, they told her, could be done.

That night the exhausted mother dropped Malakai at her mother-in-law’s house so she and Mr Paraone could get some sleep but during the night he worsened and was rushed to Princess Margaret Hospital.

Nicole received a phone call telling her to rush to the hospital as soon as possible, her son was in intensive care.

Nicole told Nine News that doctors told them Malakai was suffering from meningococcal.

“Three days I tried to get him help — three days, two hospitals, one doctor’s surgery, an ambulance trip,” Ms Thompson told Nine News.

“If they had done their job properly my son would still be here.”

“If they had done their job properly my son would still be here.” Via Facebook.

She told The West Australian, "My son had been fighting a virus all week and I was told it was teething. He had a temperature, vomiting, rash and joint pain."

“Not one medical staff member over the three days I took him in thought they should keep my seven-month-old in for observation.”

Nicole says that when she told doctors they had been turned away from PMH earlier that week they “changed the diagnosis” from meningococcal to blood poisoning from a throat infection.

“Not one medical staff member over the three days I took him in thought they should keep my seven-month-old in for observation.” Via Facebook.

Midland Public Hospital chief executive Dr Glen Power and PMH acting executive director Michelle Dillon told The West Australian they could not discuss treatment of individual patients.

They both expressed deep sympathy to Ms Thompson and her family but for Nicole it isn’t enough.

“I really do feel like going to that Midland hospital and saying ‘You know how you laughed at me for asking those questions, well my son passed away.”

Malakai's death has been referred to the coroner.

A GoFundMe page has been set up to help the family.