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Child Item

Teenage girl dies on street from peanut allergy

Gyalist

Emma (14) was out for a pre-Christmas meal with her family when she accidentally ate a nut-based sauce and suffered a severe allergic reaction

But when her mother rushed to a nearby pharmacy to get help, she was refused a life-saving adrenaline injection because she didn't have a prescription.

The distraught mother was told to bring her daughter to hospital but the two had only got a few yards away when the teenager collapsed.

Emma's mother, Caroline, told the Irish Independent: "I'm so angry I was not given the epipen to inject her. I was told to bring Emma to an A&E department.

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RIP Emma, and my heartfelt condolences to her family and friends.

This story has me really shaken as my teenaged son has a severe nut allergy and this is the stuff of my worst nightmares.

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SEPT 23 1989

I would have gone in over the counter and faced the consequences later

This will be a living nightmare for the mother RIP

[Deleted User]

I don't want to sound cold - obviously this is a tragic event for her family and friends.

But I think it's beyond unfair to blame the pharmacy. The family, including Emma, knew that she had a severe peanut allergy. She chose something with peanuts in it, and no one had her epipen with them. Those are the two oversights that lead to her reaction. It's a more than understandable mistake to make, but it's not up to the pharmacy to hand out serious medication like that to people that come in off the street with no prescription. I can understand her mother feeling distraught about it, but I think it's irresponsible for the Independent to publish what reads a lot like an accusation against the pharmacy.

The Pheasant2

I understand the need for all the restrictions etc. when giving out drugs but if my daughter was about to die I think I'd be vaulting over the counter and taking the adrenaline myself

Gyalist

Deleted User wrote: »

If that's accurate about the pharmacy not giving out the shot, well, yeah, not much can be said about it. I'll await the usual by-the-bookers to come along though.

My son is supposed to carry his Anapen with him at all times but sometimes doesn't. The reported reaction by the pharmacy doesn't surprise me though as I've come across many medical people who are uninformed about anaphylactic shock and how quickly it can become fatal.

Plazaman

Prescription needed pharmacy assistant should be brought to task on this. An obvious emergency overrides all bureaucracy.

[Deleted User]

osarusan wrote: »

Horrible story. The stuff of nightmares.

Why didn't the mother/parents have the necessary medication themselves though?

I'd have thought that for allergies like these, carrying the medicine around for an emergency would have been acceptable to doctors, surely.

They could've left it at home. Things like these will happen eventually, if you think of someone who leaves the house twice a day to go somewhere, and not including along the way, that's 4 opportunities a day to forget to carry something, about 1500 per year. Once in a while the worst will happen to someone and it will coincide with not having their device.

biko

Unfortunately chemists can't give out drugs like that. Maybe this will bring out some emergency legislation but it's too late for Emma now.

Poor parents

shruikan2553

Terrible thing to happen but if you have an allergy that can kill you you should always have the medication with you and ask before ordering anything.

Dave0301

Pharmacy should have given the epipen, the girl should have had an epipen with her as well tho.

osarusan

Horrible story. The stuff of nightmares.

Why didn't the mother/parents have the necessary medication themselves though?

I'd have thought that for allergies like these, carrying the medicine around for an emergency would have been acceptable to doctors, surely.

[Deleted User]

If that's accurate about the pharmacy not giving out the shot, well, yeah, not much can be said about it. I'll await the usual by-the-bookers to come along though.