Mother of long Covid girl hopes others will join legal action against NHS board
Amother whose child has spent nearly four years suffering from long c ovid says her legal action“is as hot across the bow of the Scottish Government”, and hopes other families will join her in taking health boards to court.
Helen Goss, whose 11-year-old daughter anna hen dy has been left “pretty much bedbound” by long Covid, wants fellow sufferers to “take aggressive action to force the Scottish Government to act urgently”.
Anna first contracted coronavirus in March 2020, during the first wave of the Covid-19 pandemic, leading to nearly four years of symptoms, including “extreme lethargy” and “psychotic breaks”.
At her worst, Anna suffered from PANS - paediatric acuteonset neuropsychiatric syndrome - which is characterised by a sudden onset of neuropsychiatric symptoms including obsessions/ compulsions or food restriction.
“She would have psychotic breaks, and be very dazed after. She was extremely fatigued. It was very clear that something very wrong was happening, we just didn’t know what,” said Ms Goss, from Westhill, Aberdeenshire.
Anna has since contracted Covid three more times, with worsening severity.
Ms Goss claims NHS Grampian, her local NHS health board, has refused to refer Anna to specialist services. She is now taking legal action against the health board, alleging a number of failings.
“The services, the specialists she needed to see, flat out said ‘we’re not seeing her’ and I still don’t know why. I put in a complaint after two years.”
The action, filed by Ms Goss’ legal representatives Thompsons Solicitors, says these failings “could have been avoided had NHS Grampian followed contemporary guidance on diagnosis and treatment”, and that NHS Grampian’ s“breach es amount to negligence at common law of which damages are claimed”. It is thought to be the first case of its kind in Scotland.
When asked whether children are being refused treatment by NHS Grampian, the health board refused to answer, citing patient confidentiality.
“We can not comment on individual patient cases,” a spokesperson for NHS Grampian said.
“Along Covid pathway of care for children has been designed with the input of those with lived experience of the conditionand is in the final stages of development, along with a new website for families.
“NHS Grampian has a Long Covid Project Board and a Long C ovid paediatric steering group which help to inform our work. “We also now have a paediatriclong c ovid practitioner as well as a paediatricclinical lead for long Covid.”
Ms Goss said she “really hopes” other families and sufferers take legal action against health authorities and the Scottish Government. “This legal case is a warning shot across the bow of the scottish government that I am not going to stop until every single child with long Covid has the health care and education that they are entitled to.”
A spokesperson for the Scottish Government said it “would not be appropriate” for the scottish Government to comment on live legal proceedings.”
“We take the issue of long Covid very seriously and recognise the impact it can have on the health and wellbeing of those most severely affected,” the spokesperson said.