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The grieving parents of a five-year-old boy say they heard hospital staff laugh when their son’s life support machine turned off.

Haroon Rashid, 41, says he was forced to say goodbye to his son, Muhammad Ayaan Haroon, while medical staff in the same room laughed in the background.

He says that only a thin curtain stood between the laughing doctors and nurses who had treated Ayaan as they watched him take his last breath.

Haroon has filed a formal complaint about the conduct of the staff after a family member had to go and ask them to be respectful while they spent their last moments with Ayaan.

Bosses at Sheffield Children’s Hospital have promised a “thorough” investigation into the family’s claims.

Ayaan had been admitted to the hospital on March 5 with trouble breathing.

He had a history of respiratory illnesses and a rare genetic condition called Ago 1 that caused developmental delays.

Ayaan lost his life on March 13.

Haroon, a taxi driver and father of four from Sheffield, said: “We don’t know how we will live without him now that our son is gone.

“On the other hand, we are concerned about what happened to him. We do not want this to happen to any other child or any other family.

“When the machine went off at 2:30 a.m., we had a lot of family members there.

“There was laughter coming from the staff members. We were very upset.

“There was no one else in the room apart from the staff and another little boy behind the curtain from us.

“Surely the staff knew that Ayaan’s machine was about to shut down. They continued to laugh after my relative asked them to stop.

“A child’s life was coming to an end.

“It was very insensitive. We live with the loss of our son, but we are very, very angry about the behavior of the staff.”

Haroon and his wife Fakhra Dibi, 45, are now calling for their son’s treatment to be investigated.

Her 10-page complaint details concerns about the medical care Ayaan received, as well as “inappropriate” behavior by staff as her family said goodbye.

Haroon also described a similar incident when his wife received news that Ayaan’s condition was deteriorating a few days before her death.

According to her, they broke the news that Ayaan’s chances of survival were slim due to an adenovirus infection in a room full of laughing staff, children and other parents.

Haroon, whose daughters are 20, 16 and 12, said: “My wife called me crying after the doctor broke the news.

“They told him there in the room, with nurses who were laughing in the background.

“They should have taken her to a private room, not told her that in front of everyone. It’s very insensitive.”

Ayaan’s initial cause of death has been listed as an adenovirus which can cause flu-like symptoms and pneumonia.

A medical examiner has yet to make a decision on whether an inquest will be held into his death.

However, Haroon is now concerned about the treatment of his 12-year-old daughter, who is an outpatient at the same hospital and is also experiencing developmental delays.

This comes after Haroon experienced what he called a “dismissive” attitude towards concerns he raised about his son.

He said: “Every day in my son’s treatment, something went wrong. They didn’t listen to my years of experience caring for my children.”

“I am not a doctor but I know my son’s story.

“From past experiences I knew what treatment my son needed from the beginning, but no one listened to me.

“My son was shown no compassion, no dignity, no respect, no humanity.

“I want to highlight the hospital’s failures so that no other child suffers like my son.

“I have another son who is a patient at the same hospital.

“After how her brother was treated, I don’t feel she is safe in the care of staff at Sheffield Children’s Hospital.”

According to Haroon, she was prevented from giving her son a nebulizer and suctioning out mucus from his chest after her son was unable to cough up the fluid himself.

The staff refused to do it despite Haroon saying it was necessary and had to be reminded after the procedure became part of Ayaan’s treatment plan.

Haroon also alleges that staff delayed taking samples to identify her son’s chest infection, which Haroon said prevented her son from having a “fighting chance” to recover from the virus.

On March 23, ten days after Ayaan’s death, Haroon alleges that the hospital phoned him for a follow-up appointment for Ayaan, even though their records showed her death.

However, Haroon wished to commend the earlier treatment his family had received at Sheffield Children’s Hospital.

Haroon said his son’s outpatient treatment at the hospital previously had been flawless and his consultants had been there to help them every step of the way.

Ayaan was described by his father as “the best in all of Sheffield”.

His father said all the school staff attended his son’s funeral at the Medina Mosque in Sheffield.

He described Ayaan as a young man who always had a smile on his face, who loved to be caught and enjoyed children’s shows like Cocomelon and Hey Duggee.

Dr Jeff Perring, Sheffield Children’s NHS Foundation Trust Medical Director, said: “I wish to extend my condolences to Ayaan’s family on her loss.

“The death of any child is tragic and I know that my colleagues who treated and came to know Ayaan during her short life will share the expression of these condolences.

“The loss of a child while a patient at Sheffield Children’s is something we take very seriously.

“Our colleagues pride themselves on providing the best clinical and pastoral care to all children and youth in need.

“We have received the complaint from Mr. Rashid, which is very detailed and complex.

“There will be a thorough internal investigation into the care and treatment Ayaan received at the hospital between March 5 and 13, covering the concerns raised in Mr. Rashid’s complaint.”

Haroon and his family were encouraged to make a formal complaint to Ruth Brown, chief executive of the Sheffield Children’s NHS Foundation Trust, after another family whose son died last year at the same hospital received support.

Yusuf Mahmud Nazir was five years old when he died of pneumonia at Sheffield Children’s Hospital after being sent home from another hospital days earlier due to a lack of beds.