The family of a 13-year-old girl who died after contracting the flu have been left heartbroken and demanding answers.
Sharney Lee Mitchel, from Brabham in Perth’s northeast, died at her home having been discharged from hospital five days earlier.
Her parents found her unresponsive in bed and couldn’t wake her just before midday last Sunday (August 18). The couple called paramedics, but the teen sadly couldn't be revived.
On August 12, Sharney was taken to Joondalup Health Campus as she was suffering with flu-like symptoms. After running some tests, staff found that she had contracted the viral infection influenza A.
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Due to her condition she was kept in overnight and was discharged the following morning.
The teenager’s family have said they don’t know why her condition deteriorated so rapidly when she got home.
They also want to know why the hospital opted to discharge her despite her still presenting symptoms.
The West Australia Police have also been called but found nothing suspicious, meanwhile the Health Department is waiting on the results of a post-mortem to determine the exact cause of death.
A representative for Ramsay Health issued a statement following the teen's death, explaining that Sharney was released because she had no fever and her chest X-ray was normal at the time of her discharge.
Speaking to local news, her family have said they wanted to share their daughter’s picture to reiterate the seriousness of flu. So far this year, seven people have died from the flu in West Australia.
Influenza is a contagious respiratory illness and impacts people the world over.
Australian health authorities have said that getting vaccinated is the best protection against the flu. They have also recommended getting a flu vaccine each year for everyone aged six months and older to protect against the most common strains.
According to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), there are four types of influenza viruses - A, B, C, and D.
Influenza A and B viruses cause seasonal epidemics of disease in people (known as flu season) almost every winter in the United States.
The illness can easily be passed on person to person through droplets left on surfaces and in the air after an infected person coughs or sneezes.
While many people do not worry about the flu, it can lead to serious complications including pneumonia, breathing problems and death.
Gerrard Kaonga