Sue's Story *May Be Upsetting*

[Alan]

It was January 2005. Sue 22 years old (not her real name) and her husband Jim 24 years old ( not his real name) decide that they want to try for a second baby. There first child is 18 months and they do not want there to be a big age difference between the two children. Sue falls pregnant quickly. Just as she did with her first baby. The pregnancy went normally, just the usual morning sickness and general aches and pains. Her first baby was born vaginally, no problems and no stiches, but this time Sue has decided to have a C/S as a few of her friends told her that it is far less painful than a vaginal birth.

At the beginning of November Sue has her C/S at 39 weeks. She delivers a baby girl weighing 7lb 6oz and everything went well. The surgeon that performed is a well respected paediatrician and surgeon throughout QLD. 3 days after the C/S when the dressing was being removed there was a small amount of yellowish fluid coming from a very small opening in the wound a swab was taken and sent off for testing. Sue also has a slight temperature.

Before the results of the swab are back Sue complains of feeling unwell, she now has a high temperature 38.7. Sue's antibiotics are changed from oral (tablets) to IV ( a drip). The results of the swab show that Sue has MRSA ( golden staph). This bug can be very hard to kill. Sue's condition continues to get worse and she is transferred to a major hospital in Brisbane where she had an emergency hysterectomy. Her condition continued to worsen and she was transferred to ICU. Despite massive doses of antibiotics she became septic lapsed into a coma and was not expected to live. However after just over 2 weeks in ICU she was transferred to a general ward and 10 days ago she was transferred back to us in western QLD.

After a few more days in hospital Sue was discharged home.
The septicaemia has damaged her heart and she also has 2 cysts on her liver.

Sue has to come to hospital twice a day for IV antibiotics. This treatment takes 2 hours for each visit. She also has to have blood tests every week because the antibiotic that is being used can destroy the liver.

In another 6 weeks Sue has to go back to Brisbane for more tests to see if the treatment has been successful and to assess if there has been any improvement in the damage to her heart.

Although the names are false this is a true story. It is going to be many many months before we know if Sue's heart and liver have suffered any permanent damage, but from the tests that have been done so far it is not looking good for her heart, one of the valves has been badly damaged by the infection.