Key facts
- Elizabeth Struhs' child protection case was not prioritized due to a caseworker's heavy workload.
- The caseworker may have been "overly influenced" by the family's "upper class home" presentation.
- Elizabeth died on January 7, 2022, of diabetic ketoacidosis after her father stopped her insulin.
- Child safety intervention was ended after 17 weeks, with Elizabeth assessed as "safe".
- The caseworker had a caseload of approximately 25-28 children in 15 families on intervention.
- The caseworker asked not to be assigned to the case due to personal experience with type 1 diabetes.
Elizabeth Struhs' child protection case was not prioritized due to a caseworker's heavy workload, the Queensland Coroners Court heard. The eight-year-old died on January 7, 2022, of diabetic ketoacidosis after her father, Jason Struhs, stopped providing insulin for her type 1 diabetes. The caseworker testified that she had a "big caseload" and was not always available for weekly check-ins, contrary to departmental guidelines. She also stated that Elizabeth's case was not treated as complex and that she may have been "overly influenced" by the family's "upper class home" presentation, potentially prioritizing other cases deemed at higher immediate risk. The caseworker also noted a personal bias due to her own child's near-fatal experience with type 1 diabetes and had asked not to be assigned to the case. Child safety had ended its involvement with the family after 17 weeks of intervention in 2019, assessing Elizabeth as "safe" despite objections from specialist doctors. Fourteen adult members of the mother's church group, the Saints, were convicted of Elizabeth's manslaughter last year.