Mother-of-two Lucinda Smith tragically died after a minor scratch on the back of her hand contracted sepsis, a form of blood poisoning which leads to organ failure.
Two days after receiving the minor scrape while gardening, the 43-year-old solicitor from Essex, UK, noticed a pain in her shoulder and so visited her local GP. However she was sent away with a prescription for pain relief and told to see a physiotherapist.
Her condition continued to worsen and so, a further three days later, she visited the emergency department at Basildon Hospital where a blood test revealed she had sepsis. She was immediately given intravenous antibiotics but she died two days later, leaving behind her fiancé Darren O’Neill and children Megan, 9, and George, 6.
Although the incident took place in March last year, her grieving family are only now able to speak publicly about it and are urging people to seek early intervention so they do not suffer the same avoidable fate.
“We know that every hour’s delay in administering antibiotics increases the risk of death by eight per cent,” professor Finfer tells Australian Sepsis Network.
Sepsis is a potentially life-threatening disease which is triggered by an injury or infection. Warning signs can include fever, increased heart rate, extreme pain or discomfort, and confusion. In Australia, sepsis affects more than 30,000 people each year resulting in 3000 deaths.
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