Stephanie's GP wouldn't give her antibiotics because of the recent clamp-down: Now, having lost her colon and nearly dying, she shares her terrifying story

  • 24-year-old Stephanie Jennings was refused antibiotics 5 times by her GP
  • She lost 2.5 stone in a few weeks, and was finally admitted to A&E
  • Tests revealed that she had sepsis, a condition that can kill within hours

Sitting in her GP’s office for the fifth time in three weeks, Stephanie Jennings fought back tears as she begged for antibiotics.

For weeks, she had been plagued by a constant sore throat that had become so painful, she could barely touch solid food. 

In the space of just a couple of weeks, her weight had plummeted from a healthy 8 st 7 lb to 6 st — painfully thin for her 5 ft 7 in height.

Stephanie's condition started as a sore throat, and soon got so bad she was only able to take sips of water 

Stephanie's condition started as a sore throat, and soon got so bad she was only able to take sips of water 

Stephanie had hoped her symptoms would improve in time, but she was now getting worse: as well as the pain, she was now also feeling exhausted.

At her fourth appointment, the GP told her she had a common cold. 

Even when she went back for the fifth time a few days later — with her throat by then so bad she could only sip water — he remained resolute in his diagnosis and sent her away with a prescription for antibacterial mouthwash.

‘My throat wasn’t just a normal sore throat — it was agony and there were white spots at the back of it,’ says Stephanie, who runs a beauty business and lives with her gas engineer partner Michael Joseph, 31, and their son Elban, two, in Worthing, West Sussex.

‘I thought I had tonsillitis, but when I suggested to the doctor that my throat was getting worse, not better, and that I thought I might need antibiotics, he said no, it wasn’t a bad enough infection.

‘Over the five appointments, I had seen at least one doctor more than once, but each time, I was refused antibiotics.

‘At one point, I had tears in my eyes and was saying: “Please, please, please, I really need something to help me” — yet I was told again and again that I didn’t need antibiotics.’

A few days after her fifth dismissal from the GP, Stephanie’s health deteriorated and she rang Michael, begging him to come home from work. ‘I couldn’t even cry I felt so poorly,’ she recalls.

Michael took her to A&E at Worthing Hospital where she was diagnosed with sepsis — a life-threatening condition triggered by an infection: in Stephanie’s case, pneumonia.

With sepsis, the body’s immune system goes into overdrive, causing a dramatic drop in blood pressure and reducing the blood supply to vital organs such as the brain, heart and kidneys.

After being dismissed five times by the GP, Stephanie was taken to A&E and soon diagnosed with sepsis

After being dismissed five times by the GP, Stephanie was taken to A&E and soon diagnosed with sepsis

If not treated swiftly, it can kill within hours. ‘I was told if I hadn’t gone to hospital, I may not have made it through the night,’ says Stephanie. 

‘But if I had been given antibiotics all those weeks earlier, when I first went to the doctor with a sore throat, that initial dose would have been enough.’

Two months after Stephanie was discharged, she was back in hospital, as the massive doses of antibiotics she’d been given to save her from sepsis had triggered ulcerative colitis, a form of bowel disease which causes inflammation and ulceration of the colon.

Her colon was so damaged, it was close to rupturing and, at the age of just 24, Stephanie had to have hers removed.

The massive doses of antibiotics meant that Stephanie needed surgery to remove her colon

The massive doses of antibiotics meant that Stephanie needed surgery to remove her colon

A year later, she is understandably upset about what happened. 

‘As the GP seemed very against me having antibiotics for a very clear infection, I am now living with the huge consequences every day.’ 

In fact, the GPs’ refusal to give Stephanie antibiotics is, in some respects, understandable. 

GPs are under pressure to cut the amount of antibiotics they prescribe because of the threat of rising antibiotic resistance.

In May, David Cameron told GPs to halve the number of antibiotic prescriptions issued by 2020.

At the time, there were warnings that an estimated 10 per cent of the 34 million antibiotic prescriptions written each year are inappropriately given for infections such as coughs and colds caused by a virus rather than bacteria.

The latest figures show that GPs in England have cut antibiotic prescriptions by 2.6 million last year, a drop of 7.3 per cent.

But Stephanie’s story highlights the flipside of this clampdown — doctors potentially being over-cautious in prescribing the drugs, meaning that patients who really do need them aren’t getting them.

Doctors are ‘stuck between a rock and hard place’ when it comes to deciding who should and should not be prescribed antibiotics, says Clare Gerada, a former chair of the Council of the Royal College of GPs. 

She points out that, already, some of those who would previously have routinely been given antibiotics — such as those with severe asthma, or chronic airways disease, or with a previous proven bacterial infection (for example, children with recurrent urine infections) — are no longer necessarily being prescribed the drugs.

‘Most people don’t need antibiotics,’ says Dr Gerada. ‘But it is so hard to get appointments and, as we can’t spend as long as we need with them, patients expect us to almost reward them for their effort — that includes sometimes giving antibiotics.

‘But there is always the risk that if we don’t prescribe them and something happens, we are blamed for with-holding potentially life-saving treatments. 

Telling the difference between an infection caused by a virus or bacteria is difficult and done mostly on experience based on the patient’s symptoms, time of year, what the signs are — such as a rash or runny nose — and a knowledge of a patient’s history, including underlying problems.

‘This is very difficult and, of course, we can get it wrong.’

Stephanie during her time in hospital. One year later, she is understandably upset about what happened

Stephanie during her time in hospital. One year later, she is understandably upset about what happened

To see if the clampdown on antibiotics may have unforeseen consequences, scientists at Imperial College London’s NIHR Health Protection Research Unit are investigating whether more patients are requiring hospital treatment for complications of infections that could otherwise have been simply cleared with a course of antibiotics.

The 18-month study will check, for example, if patients with chest infections are turning up to hospital a few weeks later with severe pneumonia.

Alison Holmes, a professor of infectious diseases at Imperial College, who is leading the research, told Good Health: ‘The reality is that we are using too many antibiotics and reducing unnecessary use is essential for tackling the growing and very real threat of antibiotic resistance.

‘However, the public, patients, doctors and policymakers all need this information we are looking into to be reassured that this reduced prescribing isn’t causing unintended consequences for patients — such as more infections, or increased complications, GP appointments or even hospital admissions from infections.

‘We need these measurements so that we can understand how we can reduce their use safely.’

One answer could be effective diagnostic tests. This month, researchers at Zhejiang University in China revealed they have developed a simple breath test which instantly shows whether a patient needs antibiotics for a chest complaint.

The test responds to airborne compounds exhaled when a patient has a severe bacterial infection in the respiratory tract.

One year later, the 24-year-old's story highlights the flipside of GPs' clampdown on antibiotic prescriptions

One year later, the 24-year-old's story highlights the flipside of GPs' clampdown on antibiotic prescriptions

However, Dr Gerada thinks tests — unless they can produce instant results for the GP as the patient sits in front of them — are of limited benefit. 

‘Patient tests are a long way away and I’m not sure they will help,’ she says. ‘It will add yet another burden to our already burdensome day.

‘If we could have “near patient testing”, which can be done while they sit in front of me, such as tests we can do for pregnancy or blood sugar, it would help. 

But something that needs sending off for a result three days later is no good.’

In the meantime, Stephanie believes the answer is for doctors to listen to their patients. 

As she points out: ‘I was one of the lucky ones. It could so easily have been very, very different. A lot of people who are refused antibiotics get sepsis and die.

‘I understand doctors have to reduce the amount of antibiotics they give out, but I nearly lost my life and my son almost grew up without his mum due to something as minor as a sore throat.

‘After five visits to a GP, surely someone should have been thinking: “This is not right." '

 

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