The parents of a young meningitis victim have criticised what they described as the "appalling" way their son was treated by staff at University College Hospital Galway where they claim he was left waiting for 2 1/2 hours without being diagnosed. Their allegations have been strongly rejected by the health board.
Michael and Margaret Fahy of Renmore, Galway, claimed yesterday that if their son Brian (18), had been left any longer in the hospital before being transferred to Merlin Park Hospital at Christmas, he would have died.
The Western Health Board on behalf of University College Hospital said in a statement yesterday it would apologise for any unnecessary concern or anxiety caused, but insisted the patient concerned was attended to without delay on arrival at the casualty department.
His condition was regarded as serious, requiring admission to hospital, and he was admitted to Merlin Park Hospital where his condition was diagnosed and treated appropriately, the statement added. His family have claimed they "went through hell" in the three hours Mr Fahy spent at UCHG, when they believed he was dying and not being treated with the urgency required.
On St Stephen's night, Mr Fahy thought he had the flu and went home after spending half an hour out with friends. He spent the night vomiting and had a severe headache, "worse than any headache I've ever had", he said. The following morning, his parents decided he should go to the hospital. Although he was seen within 20 minutes, his condition was deteriorating and soon he was semi-conscious. His parents said he was "roaring with pain" as he lay on a bed in one of the cubicles. Mr Michael Fahy said that he could see his son was getting worse. He and his wife were told their son was being transferred to Merlin Park because there were no facilities or specialists in UCHG that day.
Mr and Mrs Fahy said they could not understand why there was only one ambulance operating between the two hospitals, or the reason why their son was in casualty for more than 2 1/2 hours without being diagnosed as having meningitis.
"I knew Brian was getting worse. He was telling the doctor, that he was dying and we believed him . . . we knew he was bad but we didn't know what was wrong with him," said Mr Fahy. He was diagnosed as having meningococcal meningitis when they arrived at Merlin Park and soon developed a rash. The family were told by a doctor to "expect the worst". Mr Fahy was unconscious in the intensive care unit for two days. His parents said he survived because of prompt diagnosis and treatment with antibiotics at Merlin Park Hospital.
"Only for we kept putting pressure on them to get him to Merlin, it might have been a different story for us today," said Mr Fahy. "I know it was Christmas and that there were fewer staff on duty than normal but we can't believe the treatment we received."
He said they were not the type of family who would complain, but in this instance they believed they had almost lost their son.