The Elizabeth Struhs child protection case was not prioritised due to high workload, an inquest has heard, raising serious questions about the effectiveness of child safety interventions in Queensland. Elizabeth, an eight-year-old girl with type 1 diabetes, died on 7 January 2022 from diabetic ketoacidosis after her father, Jason Struhs, stopped providing insulin at their Toowoomba home. The case has shocked the nation and prompted a coronial inquest into how child protection authorities handled the family.
Caseworker Workload and Lack of Prioritisation
The Queensland coroners court heard on Friday that the single child safety officer assigned to Elizabeth's case did not work intensively or make weekly check-ins, despite departmental guidelines. The officer told the court she was "very busy" and did not prioritise the case. This lack of prioritisation meant that Elizabeth's case was not given the attention it required, even though she had previously been hospitalised in a coma in 2019 due to her diabetes.
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Upper-Class Bias and Risk Assessment
The inquest also heard that the caseworker may have been "overly influenced" by the presentation of the Struhs' "upper class home". This bias may have led her to put cases that appeared to involve more immediate risk ahead of Elizabeth's. The family's home environment and religious beliefs, which included an extreme form of Christianity that denied the use of medicine, were not adequately considered in the risk assessment.
Timeline of Child Safety Involvement
| Date | Event |
|---|---|
| 2019 | Elizabeth presents to hospital in a coma; child safety becomes involved |
| 2019-2020 | Child safety ends involvement after 17 weeks, assessing Elizabeth as "safe" |
| 2021 | Jason Struhs converts to his wife's religious sect and stops insulin |
| 7 January 2022 | Elizabeth dies from diabetic ketoacidosis |
Key Takeaways from the Inquest
- The child safety officer did not make weekly check-ins as required by guidelines.
- The case was not prioritised due to the officer's high workload.
- The officer may have been influenced by the family's upper-class home, leading to a misjudgment of risk.
- Child safety ended its involvement after just 17 weeks, despite the serious nature of Elizabeth's health condition.
FAQ
What was the outcome of the Elizabeth Struhs child protection case?
The case was not prioritised, and child safety ended its involvement after 17 weeks, assessing Elizabeth as "safe". She later died from diabetic ketoacidosis.
Why was the case not prioritised?
The assigned child safety officer was "very busy" and did not follow departmental guidelines for intensive intervention, including weekly check-ins.
What role did the family's upper-class home play?
The caseworker may have been "overly influenced" by the presentation of the "upper class home", leading her to prioritise other cases she believed involved more immediate risk.
The inquest continues, with Coroner Ainslie Kirkegaard examining the circumstances leading to Elizabeth's death. The case highlights systemic issues in child protection, including workload pressures and potential biases that can compromise the safety of vulnerable children.
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