http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/news/2...agnosed-him-with-ordinary-flu-86908-21699075/
Family demand to know why healthy dad died of swine flu.. four days after doctor diagnosed him with ordinary flu
Sep 25 2009 By Jack Mathieson
A SUPERFIT dad died of swine flu four days after a doctor told him he had ordinary flu - and sent him home with antibiotics.
Tragic Bill Anderson, 53, was the first Scots victim of the H1N1 strain who had no underlying health problems.
Yesterday, Bill's loved ones demanded to know why the GP he was sent to by the NHS 24 helpline failed to diagnose the virus.
Bill, 53, from Kirkcaldy, Fife, deteriorated at home and had to be taken to hospital, where he died with pneumonia in both lungs after two days on a ventilator.
The news was broken to his shell-shocked family just 45 minutes after medics confirmed he had swine flu.
Squash enthusiast Bill died nine weeks after walking his elder daughter Monica down the aisle - and he was eagerly awaiting the birth of his first grandchild.
Last night, Monica, 21, who is due to give birth to a boy in three weeks, said: "We have so many questions that need answered.
"My dad was a qualified psychiatric nurse and he expected to be kept in hospital and treated for swine flu. What made the GP think he did not have swine flu?
"And if he had been admitted to hospital, would it have made any difference? Would they have spotted the onset of pneumonia?
"If he had given been Tamiflu immediately, would it have made any difference to the outcome?
"He was really grey, he could hardly walk properly and he could not keep anything down. We were astonished when he arrived back home."
Bill's widow Lynda, 56, said: "We are very private people but we want to speak out because we would hate to see any other family go through this."
Bill, a former RAF medic who was later a nurse at Berkshire's Broadmoor high-security hospital, took ill on September 4 - three days after his 53rd birthday.
He had just returned with his wife from Tenerife, where they celebrated positive developments in Lynda's battle with skin cancer.
But by Saturday, September 5, Bill was concerned enough about his illness - and the possible impact on his pregnant daughter - to phone the NHS 24 advice service.
He was sweating, vomiting and shivering and had a headache, sore throat and chronic diarrhoea.
His family say he was told he may have swine flu and was asked to see a GP at Kirkcaldy's Victoria Hospital that evening.
Monica's husband Romanis, 23, drove Bill to the appointment.
But after a short consultation, he was sent away with a prescription.
Monica said: "The GP thought he had normal flu. My dad thought he would have been admitted but he said he was relieved it was not swine flu."
Bill spent most of the next two days in bed and felt a bit better.
But there was a sudden change in his condition in the early hours of Tuesday, September 8. Bill woke his wife and begged to be taken to hospital. He was struggling for breath and babbling incoherently.
Bill's wife helped him dress but he collapsed before he got his shoes on.
Monica said: "The last thing we could make out from him was, 'I am going to die - I need to go to hospital'."
Bill's younger daughter Heather, 19, dialled 999 and relayed instructions from the operator to Monica, who tried to resuscitate her dad before paramedics arrived.
Monica said: "The paramedics worked really hard before taking him to the Victoria but, by 5am, we were being told his lungs were full of pneumonia and there were no signs of life in his brain."
Bill was transferred to the Queen Margaret Hospital in Dunfermline, where he was put on a ventilator.
His family sent for his elderly parents, so they could say their last goodbyes to their son.
Bill lost his fight for life the following afternoon.
Monica said: "At the hospital, they treated him as a potential swine flu victim from the start. We were given masks and gowns to wear and they later told us he had tested positive for H1N1."
Bill's funeral was held at Kirkcaldy's Viewforth Parish Church on September 18, little more than two months after he walked Monica down the aisle there.
Heavily pregnant Monica has been given the antiviral Relenza but no family members have swine flu symptoms.
She said: "If swine flu can kill a healthy man like my dad, it is something we should all be concerned about.
"We thought the post mortem would throw up a health problem we didn't know about but that wasn't the case.
"He and mum had plans to retire early and travel and he was excited about having a grandson on the way, so this has all been devastating."
The Scottish Executive said a report had been sent to the procurator fiscal. NHS Fife said they could not comment.
Family demand to know why healthy dad died of swine flu.. four days after doctor diagnosed him with ordinary flu
Sep 25 2009 By Jack Mathieson
A SUPERFIT dad died of swine flu four days after a doctor told him he had ordinary flu - and sent him home with antibiotics.
Tragic Bill Anderson, 53, was the first Scots victim of the H1N1 strain who had no underlying health problems.
Yesterday, Bill's loved ones demanded to know why the GP he was sent to by the NHS 24 helpline failed to diagnose the virus.
Bill, 53, from Kirkcaldy, Fife, deteriorated at home and had to be taken to hospital, where he died with pneumonia in both lungs after two days on a ventilator.
The news was broken to his shell-shocked family just 45 minutes after medics confirmed he had swine flu.
Squash enthusiast Bill died nine weeks after walking his elder daughter Monica down the aisle - and he was eagerly awaiting the birth of his first grandchild.
Last night, Monica, 21, who is due to give birth to a boy in three weeks, said: "We have so many questions that need answered.
"My dad was a qualified psychiatric nurse and he expected to be kept in hospital and treated for swine flu. What made the GP think he did not have swine flu?
"And if he had been admitted to hospital, would it have made any difference? Would they have spotted the onset of pneumonia?
"If he had given been Tamiflu immediately, would it have made any difference to the outcome?
"He was really grey, he could hardly walk properly and he could not keep anything down. We were astonished when he arrived back home."
Bill's widow Lynda, 56, said: "We are very private people but we want to speak out because we would hate to see any other family go through this."
Bill, a former RAF medic who was later a nurse at Berkshire's Broadmoor high-security hospital, took ill on September 4 - three days after his 53rd birthday.
He had just returned with his wife from Tenerife, where they celebrated positive developments in Lynda's battle with skin cancer.
But by Saturday, September 5, Bill was concerned enough about his illness - and the possible impact on his pregnant daughter - to phone the NHS 24 advice service.
He was sweating, vomiting and shivering and had a headache, sore throat and chronic diarrhoea.
His family say he was told he may have swine flu and was asked to see a GP at Kirkcaldy's Victoria Hospital that evening.
Monica's husband Romanis, 23, drove Bill to the appointment.
But after a short consultation, he was sent away with a prescription.
Monica said: "The GP thought he had normal flu. My dad thought he would have been admitted but he said he was relieved it was not swine flu."
Bill spent most of the next two days in bed and felt a bit better.
But there was a sudden change in his condition in the early hours of Tuesday, September 8. Bill woke his wife and begged to be taken to hospital. He was struggling for breath and babbling incoherently.
Bill's wife helped him dress but he collapsed before he got his shoes on.
Monica said: "The last thing we could make out from him was, 'I am going to die - I need to go to hospital'."
Bill's younger daughter Heather, 19, dialled 999 and relayed instructions from the operator to Monica, who tried to resuscitate her dad before paramedics arrived.
Monica said: "The paramedics worked really hard before taking him to the Victoria but, by 5am, we were being told his lungs were full of pneumonia and there were no signs of life in his brain."
Bill was transferred to the Queen Margaret Hospital in Dunfermline, where he was put on a ventilator.
His family sent for his elderly parents, so they could say their last goodbyes to their son.
Bill lost his fight for life the following afternoon.
Monica said: "At the hospital, they treated him as a potential swine flu victim from the start. We were given masks and gowns to wear and they later told us he had tested positive for H1N1."
Bill's funeral was held at Kirkcaldy's Viewforth Parish Church on September 18, little more than two months after he walked Monica down the aisle there.
Heavily pregnant Monica has been given the antiviral Relenza but no family members have swine flu symptoms.
She said: "If swine flu can kill a healthy man like my dad, it is something we should all be concerned about.
"We thought the post mortem would throw up a health problem we didn't know about but that wasn't the case.
"He and mum had plans to retire early and travel and he was excited about having a grandson on the way, so this has all been devastating."
The Scottish Executive said a report had been sent to the procurator fiscal. NHS Fife said they could not comment.
