TWO new mothers have revealed that they were both almost killed by flesh-eating bugs on the same Scots maternity ward within three months of each other.
Linzi Christie and Kirsty Hutcheson were both patients at the controversial Victoria Hospital, Kirkcaldy, Fife, when they were struck down by necrotising fasciitis.
Kirsty, 26, was hit by the condition in April this year after she was rushed in for an emergency caesarean section.
Shortly after she was allowed home with baby Carlisle, black spots started appearing around her scar as the bug took hold.
In July, Linzi, 25, also suffered necrotising fasciitis which started at her caesarean scar.
Both women needed extensive life-saving surgery and spent days in intensive care away from their new babies.
Both are now demanding an investigation and compensation from the hospital, which admits they were three cases over the period.
Kirsty, from Kinglassie, said: “My mum, who has been a nurse for nearly 40 years, arrived just before they put me under and as soon as she saw the spots she knew what was going on.
“She told me afterwards that she thought she was going to lose me and would have to raise my wee boy for me.”
Doctors removed a large amount of infected skin but the procedure had to repeated the next day to take off more.
After three days in a medically induced coma, Kirsty got to see Carlisle again.
“I could see Carlisle but I couldn’t be there for him. I couldn’t be a proper mum and that’s all I wanted when I came around but I was just too drugged up and in too much pain.”
She said: “I want to know how I got infected at their hospital – they can’t get away with it.”
Linzi, from Methil, has lodged a formal complaint with the hospital, claiming the operating theatre where she had her section was “dirty-smelling”.
She said: “For one woman to get the bug is bad enough but to find out that there was another woman before me is absolutely shocking.
“Something has to be done about this to stop others getting infected in the future because it shouldn’t have happened in the first place.”
Linzi has also consulted a lawyer about seeking compensation from the hospital.
Dr Jean Turner, Executive Director of the Scotland Patients Association, said: “This is really very scary to hear about and I think this requires a serious investigation from the head of management as well as an independent investigation.
“They need to get to the bottom of this very quickly so that no future patients should have to worry about getting sicker when they’re in hospital.
“Infections will always have a place in hospitals unfortunately due to their nature but to hear of such a rare condition, picked up on the same ward, within the same hospital, is absolutely shocking.”
Dr Brian Montgomery, Medical Director for NHS Fife confirmed there had been three cases of Necrotising Fasciitis in recent months.
“NHS Fife cannot comment on individual cases. We can confirm that we have been
contacted by one of the patients and we have been in touch with her regarding her
concerns directly.”
The Victoria hospital has attracted controversy ever since opening its doors in January 2012 after a £170m rebuild.
The hospital has been hit with more than 350 complaints from patients and is being sued by 10 of its own staff for negligence.
