She knows better than most how terrifying meningitis can be.
And now a Huddersfield mum is backing a new nationwide campaign to raise awareness of the disease and the need for treatment.
Joanne McDade, of Outlane, will be sharing her first-hand experience of meningitis and septicaemia with the local community during national Meningitis Awareness Week, which begins next Monday, to ensure people are aware of the symptoms.
International charity Meningitis Research Foundation estimates that meningitis and septicaemia affects nine people in the UK and Ireland every day. They are deadly diseases that can strike without warning, killing one in ten, and leaving a quarter of survivors with life altering after-effects ranging from deafness and brain damage to loss of limbs.
Children under five and students are most at risk, but the diseases can strike at any age and not all forms are currently covered by vaccines.
Joanne said: “My son Alex contracted Pneumococcal meningitis in 2002 when he was a baby. We were told he only had a 50/50 chance of surviving the night and it was touch and go for a few days.
“He then spent a gruelling three weeks in hospital before he was finally allowed home.
“We’ve had huge support from Meningitis Research Foundation (MRF) since then as we knew very little about pneumococcal meningitis and wanted to find out as much as we could. They gave us information about a pneumococcal vaccine and we had both Alex and my daughter Georgia vaccinated as the jab wasn’t part of the childhood immunisation scheme at the time.
“Every child should be vaccinated against all forms of the disease but until they are people need to know the symptoms so they can seek medical help fast.”
Christopher Head, chief executive of Meningitis Research Foundation, said: “We’re very grateful to Joanne for supporting Meningitis Awareness Week. Meningitis and septicaemia are diseases you never expect to happen but her personal experience really brings home how devastating these diseases can be and why it’s so important to be aware of the symptoms and be prepared to act fast when loved ones, family and friends fall sick”.
FACTFILE
MRF estimates that there are around 3,200 cases of meningitis and septicaemia every year in the UK.
They are easily mistaken for milder illnesses, but unlike a dose of flu can kill within hours and may cause serious, life-long disabilities.
As many as one in ten of those affected will die and a third of survivors will be left with after-effects, some as serious as brain damage, amputations, blindness and hearing loss.
Symptoms include fever, severe headaches, muscle or joint pain, a dislike to bright likes and a rash
