DERSINGHAM, U.K. — A girl died of meningitis after a medic took 41 minutes to call an ambulance, smoking a cigarette as her condition worsened.
Stephanie Bussey, 13, collapsed at home and her mother called for a medic, reports Mirror UK.
When the medic arrived, Bussey’s mother, Joanne Sanpher, explained her daughter, who had epilepsy, began feeling ill and suffered a seizure after an altercation at school the day before.
The medic claimed “symptoms were social rather than clinical and of a mundane nature” as the girl appeared withdrawn and did not display typical symptoms of meningitis. After spending 41 minutes with the girl he called an ambulance, which took another 29 minutes to get Bussey to the hospital.
Bussey suffered multiple heart failures and was transferred to a specialized hospital before dying four days later. According to a post-mortem examination, she died of complications from acute meningococcal disease.
Sanpher believes the responding medic dismissed her daughter’s condition. He took the time to smoke a cigarette and show her photos of his children before calling an ambulance, she said.
“He was more interested in telling me that Stephanie was a naughty little girl, was putting this on and wanted attention rather than actually
treating her,” Sanpher said.
A senior coroner has called for all response crews to be better trained and equipped with blood lactate equipment used to test for meningitis.
In a statement, the ambulance service employing the medic who responded to Sanpher’s call said that while training will be implemented, blood lactate equipment is currently not certified for pre-hospital use.