The family of a teenager with learning difficulties who died after being discharged dehydrated from hospital after complaining of constipation say her death was "entirely preventable".

Christina Saleh was admitted to Darent Valley Hospital in Dartford after struggling to go to the toilet for more than a week and becoming distressed, an inquest heard.

The 14-year-old, known to friends and family as Kristy, resided in Northfleet and had moved back to the UK after living in Jordan.

Christina, who was born in Greece and understood three languages, was non-verbal autistic and largely communicated through sounds, simple words and gestures.

Her family said she was a happy and healthy child and had recently started a new school placement at Milestone Academy in New Ash Green where it was thought she'd receive better educational opportunities.

But on July 31, 2018 Christina was admitted to Darent Valley A&E after suffering pain and discomfort in her stomach and refusing to eat or drink. At this point she had gone more than a week without a bowel movement.

An inquest into Christina's death concluded at London Inner South Coroner's Court this week.

It heard after being moved to the paediatric ward, learning difficulty specialists concluded that her behaviour was in fact caused by her constipation.

But this was either not initially accepted or not fully appreciated by doctors on the children's ward.

Monitoring of her condition was also deemed to be inadequate, in particular the treatment of her dehydration.

Despite this Christina was discharged from hospital little under a week later without having had a good bowel movement for two weeks, for continued treatment at home.

Two days later she collapsed unconscious and had a seizure.

She died shortly after at Kings College Hospital in London despite the prompt actions of paramedics.

During the four-day hearing, senior coroner Andrew Harris heard evidence from medics and the family who repeatedly told doctors of their concerns.

The court heard that constipation can be treated at home, where Christina may be more settled and that her behaviour may be easier to manage from there.

But the family challenged the assessment she was medically fit to be charged. They said they felt pressured into the decision despite their reservations.

A statement from the family read: "We advocated hard for her to get the treatment she needed, as did a NELFT Learning Disability Team member, but the hospital staff did not listen.

"Christina received inadequate nutrition and hydration for the seven days she was an inpatient.

"It seemed to us they thought a child with disabilities could not have any physical problems. "

It was also alleged that they were issued with an an ultimatum by a social worker that they should take Christina home or she would go into residential care. But the coroner did not take evidence on this point and did not make a finding of fact either way.

The court also heard there was a lack of clinical assessments regarding "the degree of dehydration" at the point of discharge.

Senior coroner Andrew Harries recorded: "I conclude that the weight of evidence is that Christina was not adequately monitored for hydration and was dehydrated during her hospital stay.

"I am not satisfied that there is sufficient evidence to conclude the degree of dehydration at discharge."

A medical cause of death was given as a pulmonary embolism caused by deep vein thrombosis and reduced mobility during her hospital stay.

Christina's degree of dehydration was listed as a contributory factor, as was oral contraceptive.

Submissions from the family claimed that the failure to diagnose and treat dehydration amounted to neglect.

But the coroner found it was insufficient to draw a conclusion on this basis in law as it only "minimally contributed" to her death, adding there was no evidence that "had she been fully hydrated she would have survived".

However, the family still maintain her death was "entirely preventable".

Doctor dad Saiel had been working in Jordan, where he is an assistant professor in pediatric nephrology, at the time of Christina's death, and was just months away from returning to the UK.

A statement issued following the conclusion of the hearing, read: "The evidence we've heard during this inquest clarifies that there is medical incompetency throughout Willow Ward at Darent Valley Hospital.

"It led to a lack of support and monitoring, miscommunication, an absence of leadership, and no one prepared to take overall responsibility for Christina's care."

As the youngest of three daughters, Christina was well loved by her family which included dad Saiel, mum Anna, and sisters Lina and Katerina.

Her family say she was a very happy and healthy child and had a good quality of life.

In particular Christina loved dancing to Michael Jackson songs, regularly played the game "Just Dance", and would often communicate her love of food through text Emojis to family members.

In a written tribute they said: "Christina was our beautiful daughter, a loving sister, and the heart of our family.

"There was never a quiet moment, and she was always singing and dancing. She understood what we said, no matter in Greek, Arabic, or English.

"We could understand what she wanted to say through her words and gestures. She loved going to her school, being outdoors and playing games.

"Christina had so much to live for and was developing her life skills to live with dignity when she grew up. "

Following the conclusion of the hearing, the family also thanked their legal team Maya Sikand at Doughty Street Chambers, Fiona McNelis at Taylor Rose, and Clare Evans. They also thanked open justice journalist George Julian for live-tweeting the inquest.

Dartford and Gravesham NHS Trust has since apologised to the family for "any shortcomings in its care".

A spokesman for the trust said: "We would like to extend our deepest sympathies to the family of Christina Saleh following her tragic death in 2018 and we cannot even begin to imagine how much this process must have contributed to their distress and grief.

"Following Christina’s death, our investigation, calling on additional external expertise, identified significant learning for the department and the trust and we have shared these findings and apologised to the Saleh family for any shortcomings in care.

"Our clinical teams have committed to significant improvements to the services provided to children and younger adults and worked with the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health following their review of services to implement those actions.

"We fully accept the coroner’s findings from the inquest and will incorporate any further recommendations as required."