Waterskiing champion Kristy Appleton could have died “within an hour” after a public hospital failed to diagnose a life-threatening illness, but her mother saved the day by seeking a second opinion.
Kristy, 17, was on the front line of Brisbane’s Princess Alexandra Hospital on Friday 9 August suffering from meningococcal disease, but was instead abruptly diagnosed with Covid 19 and sent home with only paracetamol to take.
It was only after Kristy’s condition deteriorated dramatically and she woke up screaming that she and her mother were taken by ambulance to the private Mater hospital, where they said their concerns were finally taken seriously.
Kristy, who is in Year 11 while travelling the world to compete in water skiing, said she was treated with utter disdain by staff on the Princess Alexandra.
I had tested positive for Covid, but I knew it was something more.
“My head was exploding and my whole body was in agony, I was struggling to walk and I was vomiting huge amounts of something fluorescent green, but I felt like they thought I was overreacting,” she told the BBC. Courier mail.
‘Because of my sport, I have a very high pain threshold, but this was horrible.
‘One of the nurses said, “You should be grateful you have Covid, there are people here with swine flu worse than you.”
Water skiing champion Kristy Appleton, 17, is lucky to be alive after being misdiagnosed with meningococcal disease.
Kristy’s mother, Pamela Appleton, 51, said she and her daughter were “shot down” every time they tried to speak to one of the doctors saying he “had the records” and therefore “knew what he was talking about.”
One thing that may have misled the staff on the Princess Alexandra is that Kristy did not develop a reddish-purple rash, which is a telltale sign of meningococcus.
He was later told that the reason the rash did not appear immediately was because the bacterial disease, which is fatal in 10 percent of cases and maims a third of those affected, was only in the brain and had not yet caused sepsis in the blood.
Kristy was discharged at 4.36am on Friday, 12 hours after being admitted to Princess Alexandra Hospital, and told to take paracetamol while she rested for a few days to fully recover.
However, once back home, Kristy’s condition rapidly worsened and by lunchtime she was having seizures. vomiting and diarrhea every 15 minutes.
Ms Appleton received a prescription over the phone from a medical centre, but it was of no use.
At 4pm, Mrs Appleton began to think about taking Kristy to Mater Private, but her daughter seemed too tired to be moved.
Adding to the fatigue was the jetlag Ms. Appleton and Kristy were experiencing after returning that week from Canada, where the teenager won the International Water Ski and Wakeboard Federation’s under-17 girls’ overall title.
The mother said she felt “guilty” for wanting to catch up on some sleep and not rush to the hospital that afternoon.
Mrs. Appleton’s final rest was terribly interrupted when Kristy woke up around midnight screaming.
She could not tolerate anyone touching her and had become extremely sensitive to bright light.
The family called an ambulance and when the paramedics arrived they insisted on taking Kristy to Mater Private and Mrs Appleton agreed.
Mrs Appleton said the contrast between the private and public hospitals was “like oil and water”.
She said Mater’s doctor immediately recognized the severity of Kristy’s condition and really listened to what she was telling him.
Kristy had just returned from a triumphant week of competition in Canada when she became seriously ill.
The doctor told Mrs Appleton not to panic, but that he was going to treat the mysterious illness as bacterial meningitis and that she needed to act quickly by giving her antibiotics.
Examinations were performed, as well as a lumbar puncture and blood cultures.
At around 5 a.m. on Saturday, Ms. Appleton saw a purple mark on Kristy’s neck.
At 7 a.m., an infectious disease specialist confirmed that Kristy had meningococcus.
The specialist told Ms Appleton that without urgent doses of antibiotics, Kristy could have “died within an hour”.
Kristy had been vaccinated against strains A, C, W and Y of meningococcus, but not strain B, which she may have contracted in Canada.
Although Kristy is still battling lethargy and has hearing issues, she is expected to make a full recovery and was cleared to return to school on Monday.
Ms Appleton has called for greater awareness of meningococcal disease and for the state government to raise the age of free vaccination to 25.
Princess Alexandra Hospital chief executive Dr Jeremy Wellwood told Daily Mail Australia on Saturday that when “a patient comes into hospital, they are assessed based on the symptoms they are presenting with and treated accordingly.”
“We wish Kristy all the best for a speedy recovery,” Dr. Wellwood said.
‘We thank the family for raising their concerns and are currently reviewing the care provided.
“It is important for patients and their families to raise any comments or concerns so we can review them and determine if there are opportunities for improvement.”