The unspoken killer in a crippled healthcare system

You might not find her name in the news, Google or in some lawyer’s files but my mom is one of the victims of the biggest injustice in the country – a failed healthcare system.

When the coroner appended his signature, the cause of her death read Meningitis. She was brave all through the fight of a disease that claims millions of lives universally but is rarely spoken about. The only problem is that the people who were supposed to help her fight the disease were fighting a non-existent enemy.

According to the Center of Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Meningitis is an inflammation (swelling) of the protective membranes covering the brain and spinal cord. A bacterial, fungal, parasitic or viral infection of the fluid surrounding the brain and spinal cord usually causes the swelling. However, injuries, cancer, certain drugs, and other types of infections also can cause meningitis. Bacterial meningitis is the most common (accounting for nearly 80% of the cases) with more than 1.2 million people suffering from it each year. More than 10% of these people die from the disease.

The symptoms of meningitis vary from individual to individual but include a sudden onset of headache, fever, and stiff neck. Other symptoms include vomiting, photophobia (increased sensitivity to light), confusion, and nausea. The symptoms of fever, headache and stiff neck may be difficult to notice in newborns.

However, they will show abnormal reflexes and a bulging fontanelle (the soft spot on the child’s head). These symptoms may appear rapidly or can take several days to present themselves. Antibiotics and other management methods exist for the various types of meningitis. However, it is fundamental to visit your doctor or the nearest hospital once you experience these symptoms.

Most of the symptoms of meningitis can easily be confused with other diseases. Therefore, misdiagnosis is actually the biggest cause of death in meningitis patients. Meningitis is deadly when not diagnosed immediately.

The case of my mother was a result of delayed diagnosis of the disease. After several attempts to treat malaria, anemia (which I had to arm twist the people at the blood bank to give us a few pints of blood) and other diseases that the clinicians at the facility could link with the disease, they finally suspected meningitis.

It took nearly a day to receive the CSF bacteria positive results (which is utterly delayed for an emergency test). True to the word, she was positive for the disease but then it was too late. However, she had held on long enough for a disease known to kill within hours. By the time the physician had ordered for an immediate CT scan to analyse the extent of her inflammation, she was breathing her last.

A battle hard fought received no support from the poorly equipped facility and the non-motivated health practitioners. It left many questions unanswered in the minds of those close to her. What was the qualification of the clinicians who diagnosed her of malaria based only on symptoms? What other people out there are being treated (or lost lives) to wrong diagnoses?

The truth out there is that many people are dying of meningitis and their relatives think malaria is the cause. And no matter how much salaries the healthcare professionals want to be added, the real problem in our poorly equipped facilities is negligence.

(Today marks an anniversary since he remains were interred, and am sure she would have liked others to be in the know-how and avoid her untimely fate).