In an emotional new storyline, Coronation Street is highlighting the devastating impact of sepsis.
Last night’s episode saw seven-year-old Jack Webster (Kyran Bowes) diagnosed with the deadly infection.
Coronation Street has teamed up with the UK Sepsis Trust to ensure the storyline is as true to life as possible, having previously worked with Headway UK on a brain injury storyline.
Sepsis kills 44,000 people every year in the UK – more than bowel, breast and prostate cancer put together.
It can happen as a result of any infection, from something as simple as a contaminated cut or scrape to urinary infections and lung infections.
What makes it life-threatening is the body’s over-reaction to an infection which has spread quickly – it then attacks its own organs and tissues causing them to stop working.
If it is caught early, it can be treated but sepsis is often initially mistaken for flu or a chest infection.
As medical negligence solicitors, we have seen first-hand the irreversible damage sepsis can cause.
We are currently pursuing a case for a young girl, who lost her legs after her father was twice turned away from hospital. Eventually admitted to hospital on the third visit, by this time she was suffering from septicaemic shock and multiple organ failure, and it was too late for doctors to save her legs. Her left leg had to be removed above the knee, while her right leg was amputated below the knee.
Anything that can raise awareness over the warning signs for sepsis is a step in the right direction and Coronation Street deserves credit for taking on such a difficult storyline.