Sharon's baby had a temperature and was off his food. Then he started to display signs of being startled and looking like he was falling off a cliff. Eleven years on, Sharon, from Beaconsfield in Buckinghamshire, tells the story of what happened to her son Caspar
“We gave him Calpol but he got more poorly overnight, not wanting to feed and having this startled reflex. If I had been at home I would have continued with the medicine, but as we were away and my husband was due to be playing golf for the day we decided to visit the local doctor in case he needed something stronger. It was really a case of me not wanting to be left with a poorly baby that saved him."
“On the way to the doctors, Caspar was smiling and we really felt we were wasting the doctor’s time. He was amazing and said he was probably spoiling the last day of your holiday, but that Caspar did have symptoms that were on his checklist that he couldn’t ignore so he referred us to Poole hospital."
“On arrival, they administered a lumbar puncture and swung into action. Caspar had bacterial meningitis and was in intensive care in Poole for the weekend. They believe they got the drugs into him within 12 hours of contracting it. He never had a rash and he never had a seizure."
“Caspar then had a further 10 days of daily drugs as an outpatient at our local hospital. On Friday 13 we were told it was very serious and he may lose his hearing and his limbs. But Caspar is now 11 and has no lasting damage at all - all thanks to an amazing doctor who took no risks.”
