Grieving for the loss of a loved one is perhaps one of the toughest experiences a person could ever go though, especially if it’s the death of your own child.
A British mom was reminded of this painful fact when an erring hospital employee called her to confirm an appointment for her baby, who had died three months ago.
According to a Mirror report, Lorraine Nelson was just getting over the recent death of her daughter Millie when out of the blue she received a call from Temple Street Hospital.
They wanted her to confirm an appointment for her daughter.
“I’m absolutely fuming,” she said in the report. “It was the first day I have been properly up on my feet after my stay in hospital and I had actually been feeling a lot better.
“I was sitting in my GPs waiting to see the nurse for my next injection (to treat anaemia) when I got the phone call. I was knocked for six and my legs nearly buckled from under me.”
According to the grieving mother, it was the same hospital who had diagnosed Millie with a rare condition, the same hospital that had told them that they couldn’t do anything for her and that it was only a matter of time before she was dead.
“If we had listened to them, Millie would have only lasted a few weeks but Crumlin Children’s Hospital—only a few miles away—gave us the equipment we needed to manage Spinal Muscular Atrophy (SMA) Type 1.
“As far as I’m concerned, Temple Street washed their hands of Millie when she was a few weeks old and now 17 months later, they want to see her in their clinic – three months after she gained her angel wings.”
As for the Temple Street Hospital, they said in a statement that they are now looking into the “erroneous” phone call.
“In the case of a patient or family making personal information public, this does not relieve the HSE and all HSE funded hospitals of its duty to preserve/uphold patient confidentiality at all times.
“A consultant who has treated or is treating a child in Temple Street is however always happy to discuss any aspects of a patient’s care directly with the patient (as age appropriate) and/or their family members.”
Learn more about SMA Type 1 on the next page!
What is SMA Type 1?
According to Muscular Dystrophy Australia, spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) is a genetic condition which affects the nerves that control muscle movement.
“It is named ‘spinal’ because most of the motor neurons are located in the spinal cord,” MDA says. “‘Muscular’ is in the name because it primary affects the muscles which don’t receive signals from the motor neurons.
“‘Atrophy’ is the medical term for wasting away or getting smaller, which is what generally happens to muscles when they’re not active.”
Symptoms of SMA type 1
- • Muscle weakness and poor muscle tone
- • Poor head control
- • Weak cry and cough
- • The legs tend to be weaker than the arms
- • Swallowing and feeding difficulties
- • Increased susceptibility to respiratory tract infections
- • Developmental milestones, such as lifting the head or sitting up, can’t be reached
Photo credit: Lorraine Nelson / Mirror
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