Although 15-year-old Alice repeatedly sought emergency care, she was sent home with the advice to take an Alvedon.
When her condition became life-threatening one evening, no ambulance was sent when the family called 112 and they had to drive her to Sundsvall hospital on their own.
Later that evening, Alice died – and the relatives are now directing harsh criticism at both the healthcare system and SOS Alarm.
It has been ten months since 15-year-old Alice suddenly suffered a cardiac arrest and died, and the grief is still difficult for the family to handle.
– The lust for life is far away, so not the lust for living but the lust for doing things. This has taken such a toll on us, says Alice’s grandfather William Lindholm.
Between May and July last year, Alice had recurring acute stomach pains and on several occasions she was forced into the emergency room at Sundsvall hospital. But the doctors couldn’t find the cause and Alice was advised to take Alvedon for the pain.
On the evening of July 6, she experienced such severe pain that she could not stand up. The family called the SOS alarm but they announced that there was no ambulance for 40 minutes. William instead drove Alice to the emergency room on his own.
During the car ride, Alice lost consciousness and later died in hospital.
– I couldn’t do anything other than rush her to the emergency room as soon as possible because we didn’t get an ambulance. I think it’s crazy that no ambulance was sent, it’s careless, I think.
An ambulance was ready – but was never dispatched
The hospital’s own investigation has shown that there was an ambulance inside the emergency room. It was being cleaned up after an earlier alarm and could have left within minutes. But the ambulance staff were never contacted by SOS Alarm and received no information about the alarm.
– Yes, there was an ambulance in the emergency room, but they had not informed us that it was ready for a mission, says Lotta Fernström, site manager at SOS Alarm in Sundsvall.
The management of Sundsvall’s hospital is also critical of the fact that no one from SOS Alarm notified the emergency department that there was a seriously ill patient on the way in.
– It would have been good if SOS Alarm had announced that there was an emergency patient on the way in so that the staff at the emergency room could have prepared, says Anne Thelander, director of operations at the Västernorrland region.
But SOS Alarm rejects the criticism.
– There is nothing that is included in our mission, we do not have that mission from the region, says Lotta Fernström.
“Wants an answer to be able to live on”
The cause of Alice’s death has also not been determined, which is due, among other things, to the fact that the hospital did not take blood samples from her after she died.
According to the health department’s investigation into the incident, it was probably forgotten.
– We could not have done anything differently that would have affected the outcome of this case, but there are areas for improvement, details that we can do better in the future, says Anne Thelander.
Alice’s family believes that the care and SOS Alarm have not taken responsibility for all care misses and intend to make a report of their own when they have the strength.
– I want an answer to be able to endure, yes simply to be able to live on. To get an ending, says William Lindholm.