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.
That is a tragic story, but unfortunately we all have to take responsibility for ourselves and our dependents - you can't rely on other people to do the correct thing, and errors happen.
If it was me with a life threatening allergy, I wouldn't go anywhere without an epipen and would not order anything that might result in me getting an allergen by mistake. Treats can be purchased in supermarkets where the labels can be checked. A few restrictions on the way your life is lived are preferable to dying unnecessarily.
I can understand if you've always been alright with a product from a particular place, you mentally mark it as safe, I almost never eat anything outside my home and often can't even find a sandwich I can eat. Supermarkets are not really any better to be honest, certainly not for takeaway food.
Epi pens are a huge issue, schools often don't like pupils having them because they have a needle and teachers have to decide if and when one can be used. But the biggest problem is the length of the needle, it's to short, epinephrine needs to be injected into a muscle,usually the thigh, the needles are so short that they barely get through even a healthy layer of fat and skin.
I remember that incident, GBT, that's one of the problems people think it's a laugh or just not important, one of the reasons I never eat in Chinese restaurants or takeawys is that I simply don't believe them, whren they say somethings veggie or dosen't have MSG in it. I've found bits of meat and fish in my supposedly veggie chow mein, I've been given stuff with MSG in it, which I'm really allergic too. Now probably unfairly I just avoid them all, I'm allergic to jasmine too and I can't stand sitting near someone who has jasmine rice or tea as the smell sets me off.
Sometimes you can't avoid allergens, I didn't know how allergic I was to strong perfume, until I walked into Debenhams one day and got a faceful of perfume someone had been spraying about. My facce felt like it was on fire, my eyes were burning and lips were swelling, I turned straight around and found a bathroom where I could wash my face and try and get it off me. There was no other door into the store, so I just stopped going there and it was the only dept store in town.
I agree Ian, if somebody can't pass a simple test then they shouldn't be working there, the only other test I can think of where you'd be allowed to resit that many times is a driving test, and that's frightening enough! It is the responsibility of the employer to ensure that staff are properly trained and aware. I would persue a negligent manslaughter charge against the manager or shift supervisor, I'd also shut the place down whilst inquiries are on going.