It's not available in `after(:example)` hooks because the example isn't finished until the `after(:example)` hooks run. If an error is raised while executing the `after(:example)` hook, it'll cause the example to fail, so the status isn't set until _after_ the after hooks run.
To monitor the status of examples, I recommend defining and using a custom formatter. While the primary use case of formatters is to format the console output as the spec suite runs, they are a generalized mechanism to get notified of events (example started, example complete, etc) as the suite progresses, and you can use those event notifications for any purpose.
To build a custom formatter, see the cucumber feature[1] for a simple example and the API docs[2][3] for detailed documentation.
HTH,
Myron