Mum in sepsis campaign plea after death of daughter at 17
AMOTHER who performed CPR on her daughter as she died from sepsis has urged the Welsh Government to run an awareness campaign about the illness.
Chloe Christopher, 17, from Cwmaman, died on New Year’s Eve in 2014 after collapsing in front of her terrified family with the illness.
Her mum Michelle said hearing the words “Mam, I’m frightened, I don’t feel very well” will stay with her forever.
Now Michelle, 49, from Aberdare, has started a petition calling on the Welsh Government to run a campaign to raise awareness of the signs of sepsis.
Michelle said: “We set up the petition because we just want sepsis to be a household name like meningitis.
“We want the signs and symptoms of sepsis to be known to the general public so they can be more aware, because when we as a family lost Chloe we did not have a clue. We just didn’t think it would affect us. With Chloe, she just had flu-like symptoms and then it took her.”
It was thought that Aberdare Community School student Chloe was suffering a chest infection at the time.
She was a little lethargic with some aches and pains, but it seemed to be nothing to worry about.
Michelle said previously that Chloe “rapidly deteriorated” and then collapsed in front of the family.
It is estimated that sepsis kills about 44,000 people a year, which is more than the number of deaths from breast, bowel and prostate cancer put together. Michelle’s petition has received more than 400 signatures, and she would like to see an awareness campaign across TV, newspapers, billboards and in public spaces.
Michelle said: “If you are aware of the symptoms and if you then catch it early, it can be cured. I was just reading one comment [on the petition] which said that after reading mine and Chloe’s story and learning about sepsis, her mum is still with us.”
Welsh former international footballer Neville Southall has allowed Michelle to take over his Twitter account from 8pm tomorrow to spread their message, and she is planning an awareness day in Cardiff on May 5.
A Welsh Government spokesman said: “Through our 1,000 Lives Improvement programme, we have raised awareness of sepsis within the NHS to support our efforts to improve the prevention, diagnosis and early treatment.
“This work has received international recognition.
“We were the first country in the world to implement a system to ensure early escalation of patients seen to be deteriorating and recent figures suggest the mortality figures associated with sepsis have decreased.
“We will continue to look at ways to improve prevention, diagnosis and early treatment to reduce sepsis mortality rates.”