Overview

• Joe Massa, a two-year-old suffering from hypovolemia, died after waiting over two hours for a bed and experiencing critical care failures at Northern Beaches Hospital in September 2024.
• A review identified multiple systemic and individual failures, including misclassification of Joe's condition, delayed treatment, and failure to act on parental and clinician concerns.
• Joe's parents, Elouise and Danny Massa, are advocating for a statewide implementation of 'Joe's Rule,' modeled after Queensland's 'Ryan's Rule,' to empower families to escalate care concerns.
• The hospital, operated under a controversial public-private partnership by Healthscope, faces scrutiny over its handling of public health services, with an ongoing auditor-general investigation into its performance.
• NSW Premier Chris Minns and Health Minister Ryan Park have pledged to meet with the Massa family, implement review recommendations, and consider broader inquiries into the hospital's operations.