Published on 12, July, 2020
I saw a report from a coronors court on the news yesterday about an inquest on a 13 year girl who had died after being given a dairy milk hot chocolate instead of the soya one she'd asked for, she was seriously ill within minutes of having one mouthful and dead not long after. This drink was served in a franchise branch of a well known hight street coffee shop, who said that the training and awareness of allergies hadn't been followed in this case and they agreed with the coroners findings.
How long before people take allergies seriously? I think the owners and staff who served the young woman should be prosecuted for negligence manslaughter as I fear its the only way that allergies will be taken seriously. It's not a laugh, or a joke and it definately does matter when you're given something you're allergic too. So many people think allergy suferers are fussy, lying and attention seeking and if you don't tell them you've given them an allergen they won't know.
I wonder how many people at best spend the day itching or in the toilet because of being given an allergen by someone who's to arrogant to care, or end up in hospital, let alone the mortuary?
I think we really need a public awareness campaign about how serious allergies can be.
I reckon that the person who served her is probably already suffering enough without a manslaughter charge. It's tragic.
I don't know what the solution is. The server is likely someone young who was hoping for a job with few responsibilities, and didn't ever think that something like this would happen. No one will want to work for minimum wage if a manslaughter charge was possible for being forgetful about milk in a busy shop. I'm not belittling this. It's awful. I take my own milk when I go out, and I only have intolerances (not saying people should do that - just saying that I don't trust the system)
There definitely should be something done to increase public awareness.
The person responsible is the manager or shift supervisor. Under the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 it is the responsibility of the owner or manager to ensure that employees are trained and supervised. I heard on the radio that staff had just a short online allergy presentation, including a multichoice quiz. One employee only "passed" on their twentieth attempt. If they can't pass after two or three attempts, with additional support and training if needed, they should be fired.