Coverack mother shares warning after losing her daughter to sepsis

  • Watch Sharon Rideout talk to ITV News' Grace Pascoe after her daughter died from sepsis

The mother of a young woman who died of sepsis is teaching others about the symptoms of the disease.

Chloe Rideout lived in Coverack, was studying sports massage and had plans to travel and explore the world.

She died aged 20 in October 2018, after being discharged from Derriford Hospital following an appendix operation - something an inquest later found should never have happened.

Sharon Rideout described Chloe as 'really, really lovely with a heart of gold' Credit: Rideout Family

Her mother Sharon Rideout said: “She came out of hospital on Saturday and had a terrible night.

"I slept with her and then on the morning of Sunday, I phoned 111 and they eventually came out and said, ‘oh no, this is normal, she should be fine’.

"They left, I said to my mum, I can't keep her here, she needs to go to hospital,

"So she went to hospital in an ambulance and then by the time they’d come across anything it was all too late.

"She ended up in ICU on a Tuesday and we lost her on the Friday. I know she had sepsis before they operated on the Tuesday, she had sepsis, but no one ever, ever mentioned to us sepsis.

"I just feel if I knew what I know now, it might have been a different story”.

The signs and symptoms of sepsis to watch out for are:

Sepsis symptoms Credit: ITV

If you or someone you know has any one of those six symptoms in the context of infection, then the advice from The UK Sepsis Trust is go straight to A&E or call 999.

The NHS website has further details about sepsis including what to look out for in babies and children.

Sharon says it is so important that people are armed with more knowledge about sepsis and confident to use Martha's Rule and ask for a second opinion if they feel their concerns are not being heard.

“Since we lost Chloe our mission is to make people aware of sepsis, because if I knew what I knew now, I would have asked a lot more questions.

"She actually said to me on the Sunday before, she said 'I feel like I'm going to die mum' and I just said, 'Oh, you'll be fine', as you would as a mum.

"That is one of the symptoms and so I just think people need to ask the question always, if you feel unwell, you are the best person to know how you feel and if you don't feel right, you need to go and ask and say, 'do I have sepsis?'”

The family have fundraised nearly £100,000 for the UK Sepsis Trust in Chloe's memory.